Secrets
by SereneCalamity
Summary: Gabriella has moved to Alburqueque after her father has gone to prison, and she meets with Troy, a blonde jock who seems to have a hidden secret of his own. Troyella.
1. Chapter 1

_This is my newest story, and I'm planning on making the chapters a lot longer than they used to be in my others stories, which means I won't be updating that often, sorry. The story will only be about ten chapters long._

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, only the plot. _

The silence around Gabriella Montez seemed to make the situation even gloomier. Her mother hadn't come out of her room for three days, since the court hearing. Gabriella had cooked and cleaned, done everything she would normally do, except go to school. Gabriella was the whiz of the school, and usually loved it. But now…it would horror to go back to school. It would a living nightmare to walk along the hallways with people pointing at her and staring and whispering behind their hands to their friends. Her friends would probably ignore her, and act as though they'd never met her before in her life. It would be the same as the last time this had happened. She didn't have any real friends, just people who shared the same interests as herself, the same goals, hopes, achievements.

It was obvious what was going to happen.

They would move again.

Except this time, there would be one less person. Her father wouldn't be coming with them this time. He was staying her, in Salt Lake City. It had been her home for nine months. The place they were living had been her home for a year, and that was the longest she could remember living anywhere. They had always moved. There was a court hearing—per usual—and then they would again. There was _always _a court hearing, _always _a court case, _always _another police report.

Gabriella moved around the house listlessly. She had nothing to do, there was nothing on television, and she had already spent a few hours on the computer and her head was beginning to ache. It wasn't near enough to lunch to make something to eat, so she couldn't use that as an excuse. She had lost a lot of weight in a few weeks, and already her pants were feeling loose around her stomach. Even her skinny jeans were feeling loose, and they were usually quite tight.

Finally, she grabbed her wallet and a hoodie and walked out the door. Pulling on the hoodie, Gabriella tucked her wallet into the front pocket. It would've been better with her iPod to help drown out all her feelings, but her father had busted it in his last yelling fit. Her mother had promised to get her a new one as soon as they moved and she got a new job, but she didn't want one. Her iPod had been a present from her grandma, who had died last year, and another iPod wouldn't replace it. Of course, her father wasn't thinking of that when he threw it at the wall and then stamped on it several times. What happened after the iPod smashing still left shivers in her spine. Even though her bruises were starting to fade, they still seemed to ache when she thought of him.

Gabriella got closer to the mall, which was looking rather empty because of the lack of school students. She pushed on the revolving doors and walked inside, her footsteps echoing lightly on the polished floors. There were several adults checking out the shops, and they all gave her strange looks. Gabriella gave them looks loaded with bitterness and stormed past them. She reached the Food Court and sat down on one of the benches. The last time she had been here, she had been with Raewyn Davis and Janine Peters. They had been shopping for the Prom which was coming up. None of them had dates, but they were going just for the fun of it.

Now, thanks to her father, she wouldn't be using the amazing black chiffon dress she had brought for over three hundred dollars. Raewyn and Janine had been so jealous that she had so much money to spend. Her mother had a high-paying job which kept all of them well stocked. Then Gabriella had got a part-time job to keep her out of the house, which had given her about one hundred a fortnight.

After a few minutes, she went over to the Subway and ordered a bun. The woman behind the counter took her credit card warily and swiped it. While waiting for her bun, a father and son lined up behind them. The son, a hot, blonde guy, was complaining about missing school. Gabriella was trying not to eavesdrop, but it was kind of hard. So in the end, she just listened in as the woman behind the counter walked around fetching ingredients.

"I still don't get why I had to come," the guy whined. Gabriella got her bun and walked past them, hearing the last few words from the boy. "I wanted to spend the day with Chad." Gabriella glanced up at him, and the boy abruptly stopped talking and gave her a small smile. Gabriella bit her lower lip and ducked her head. She sat at a table near the emergency exit and ate slowly. It didn't really taste of anything, even though Subway was her favorite food, it tasted like cardboard, and she threw the remaining half away.

The boy had left his father and was walking around the Rebel Sports shop. Gabriella had to go in to get new sneakers and another netball. The netball was yet another thing which was ruined in one of her fathers' rages. He'd thrown it at her, and she'd ducked. It hadn't exploded, or broken, and so he'd thrown it on the boiling oven, glad that it was finally destroyed. The burning leather had filled the kitchen with a horrible burnt smell for days afterwards. Her mother had tried to cover up the smell, cover up the memories, but even the small thing like the netball was burnt into Gabriella's memory.

Gabriella found a pair of white and black sneakers. She took of her sandals and pulled the sneakers on. They fitted fine, although a bit tight around her toes. Gabriella sighed and put them aside and put on her sandals again. She walked up to the counter and placed them there. She was about to pay for them, when the boy appeared at her side.

"She doesn't want this pair," he said softly, and took the pair of shoes off the counter. Gabriella frowned in confusion and followed him over to a stool where he was standing. "Sit down," he told her quietly. Gabriella sat down. He knelt at her feet and took of her sandals, placing them neatly beside each other. "These shoes won't fit, because you're not wearing socks." He put them on and pressed down lightly on the toes. "See? They're already a bit small for you."

"Um, thanks," Gabriella mumbled. The guy retrieved another pair of sneakers from the rack, a white and silver pair, and slipped them on. They felt a bit loose, but Gabriella guessed that she would grow into them. He walked her to the counter and Gabriella paid for the pair. "Thanks again," she murmured as she took the bag the clerk was offering her. He nodded and smiled.

"Bye," he said and walked off to find his father. Gabriella licked her lower lip and smiled slightly. She looked down at the pair of shoes in the bag and smiled again. Then she took her wallet and walked out of the shop, in the direction of home.

* * *

"Moving time, honey," Mrs Montez announced the next day. She had finally come out of her room, and she looked terrible. The lack of sun for three days had drained some of the color from her face, and she obviously hadn't been sleeping, given she had bags under her eyes. Gabriella blinked up at her mother from her bed, groaned, and pulled the covers back over her head. "No, sweets, up and outta bed!" Mrs Montez pulled the duvet back and then thrust open the curtains. Gabriella let out a louder groan and curled into a ball, trying to keep herself warm. Mrs Montez laughed slightly. "Still my same old Gabi."

Gabriella sighed as her mother left the room. Then she rolled out of bed and picked up her backpack. She started putting her clothes in. She had become an expert at packing, and knew exactly how to make all her clothes fit in a backpack and a duffel case. After she managed to get all her clothes in the back, she trooped downstairs to get a few boxes for the other stuff in her room. She saw her mum in the kitchen, smiling into the phone. Mrs Montez saw Gabriella, and gave her the thumbs up. Gabriella smiled back hesitantly, not quite sure why her mum was so happy. A few minutes later, she put down the phone and gave Gabriella another weak smile.

"I got myself a job. My company is very understanding—given the situation—and they said they don't mind getting me a transfer," Mrs Montez said. Gabriella nodded and shifted her grip on the boxes so she was holding them more comfortably.

"Where is it?" She asked.

"In Albuquerque," Mrs Montez replied. Gabriella took a deep breath and nodded. "I know that it's quite far, but—"

"Nah, it's alright, I'm good," Gabriella walked up the stairs. Her mother sighed this time and sat down on the bench in the kitchen. Gabriella walked into her room and put the boxes down on her floor in the center of the room. She started loading all her books and other things that would fit. They would move to Albuquerque, hundreds of miles away—from here, from her dad—and start a new life. Hopefully this one would be better than this life.

* * *

"Mum!" Gabriella whined. "I don't wanna start school today. We only just got here last week!" Mrs Montez sighed and gave Gabriella a push out the door. "Er," she grumbled as she stomped out the door and onto her new street. She had on the sneakers she had brought last week at the mall, a black halter-neck and jeans. A bus from her new school, East High, pulled up at the curb a few minutes later and she slowly got up the stairs. There were stares from a few of the students, given she was the "new kid", but most of them just ignored her. She made her way past a group of people she immediately knew were the cheerleaders, and then the jocks. There was only one seat left on the entire bus, and that was behind the jocks, so she slipped into it, narrowly missing having her head whacked off by a flying basketball.

The bus pulled up at another stop, and the bus went quiet. Gabriella frowned as a loud cheer went up. She saw a flash of blonde hair amongst a group of people slapping hands with whoever it was. The cheerleaders blushed red as he past them. Gabriella still hadn't seen her face, and she rolled her eyes, turning her head to look out the window.

The cheering and talking soon stopped. Gabriella wondered why it had halted so abruptly, and realized that the jocks and most other people on the bus were looking at her with an expectant expression. In fact, some of them were glaring at her. Gabriella frowned in confusion and then looked in the aisle.

The blonde guy who had hopped on the bus was standing by the seat, looking at her with a raised eyebrow. Gabriella frowned at him, trying to figure out where she had seen him before. The guy bit his lower lip as he realized it was the girl from the mall. She had moved here. He flicked his hair away from his eyes and sort of moved nervously from foot-to-foot. Gabriella also realized where she had seen him before, but since he didn't act like he recognized her, she would play that game as well.

"What do you want?" She asked him tartly. The jocks all looked put out.

"You're in his seat," one of them said. "Can you get out?" The way he put it, it wasn't a question. She was being ordered out of the seat. Gabriella looked at him, hoping that this was some kind of joke, but they all stared back, perfectly serious. Gabriella turned her eyes back to the blonde guy. She blushed a slight pink.

"Chick, move it," another guy from the basketball team told her.

"Nah, it's all good," the blonde guy said. "She can stay there." He slipped into the seat beside her. Gabriella turned her burning face to the window, glad that the bus had started up the noise again. The jocks were all talking really fast, and the cheerleaders were gazing adoringly at the blonde guy. Gabriella tried not to notice the fact his leg was pushed up against hers. He seemed to be able to ignore her easily enough, so she did the same.

When they got to school, everyone waited while the guy and then the jocks all piled out of the bus. Then everyone else made a mad rush from the door. Gabriella tried to walk out amongst the crowd, but it was obvious she was new, given the fact she wasn't talking to anyone and she was walking by herself. She had already been told which class she was in, and she followed the signs to 14B where the teacher was a teacher named Ms Darbus.

She entered the class quietly, trying to blend in with everyone else. She walked slowly around people to the back of the class. Gabriella found out that as few of the jocks and the blonde guy were in her class. She didn't know whether to be pleased or annoyed that he stared at her when she passed his table. Then the teacher came into the class, and it fell instinctively silent. The teacher glanced over them with her squinty eyes and then pulled out her clip-board with the class list on it.

"Bolton, Troy!" She yelled.

"Yes, miss," the blonde guy replied. Gabriella pursed her lips thoughtfully. His name was Troy. Troy Bolton. Gabriella zoned out of the world until she heard Ms Darbus call out her name. Then she nodded. She had already turned her head back down to her desk as Troy turned slightly in his seat and glanced at her. His eyes scanned over her body, which was seated sideways on her seat, and then they finally came to a rest of her face, which was tilted downwards.

_Hm, I hope it's okay._


	2. Chapter 2

_Okay, finally got a chapter up. I start school next week, so don't expect too many updates. I will finish the story, though, no worries there:_

Gabriella didn't take the bus home. She walked. It took half an hour longer, but she knew that her mother was out at her new job, and wouldn't be at home worrying about her. She had memorized the way home because she had walked to the school in the weekend. Once she got home, she dumped her bag, which landed with a thunk, weighed down by the homework they had received that day. Usually she didn't mind doing homework, but she couldn't be bothered right now. Gabriella walked into the kitchen and began to fish around in a box for a cup. Mrs Montez still hadn't gotten around to unpacking. She finally found a cup at the bottom of one box, and she filled it with coke. Then the phone rang.

"Hello, Gabriella Montez speaking," Gabriella said automatically into the phone. She heard a bit of rustling on the other end of the phone and then a familiar voice filter through.

"Hey sweetie, it's me," Mrs Montez said. "Look, there's this nice woman that I work for. She's looking for a regular baby-sitter for her daughter who's twelve. She's just got divorced and having a bit of a rough time. It's for an hour every Monday and Thursdays. I didn't say you'd do it, because I know how annoyed you get when I arrange things for you. But, if you're interested…" she drifted off. Gabriella sighed and chewed on her lower lip for a moment. "Honey? You there?"

"Yeah," Gabriella nodded from her end of the phone. "Yeah, uh, I'll do it." There was a sigh from the other end of the phone, but it sounded more like one of relief.

"Okay, I'll let her know." And then the phone was put down. Gabriella stared at the phone for a moment, lost in thought. Then her cat jumped up onto the bench and frightened her. Gabriella let out a squeal, and the cat hissed at the sudden noise and leapt back off the bench and scampered out of the kitchen. Gabriella sighed again and put the phone back on it's cradle. She tipped the rest of her coke down the drain and picked up her bag. She dragged it up the stairs behind her. Once up in her new room, she flopped back on her bed and stared up at the poster she had stuck above her.

It was of her favorite actress, Natalie Portman. Natalie's clear brown eyes stared straight back at her defiantly. Gabriella sighed and rolled off her bed and picked up the homework. The first one was Science, and she finished that in ten or so minutes. It was easy work that she had down when she was Year 8. She had taken a lot of advanced classes, but she had gotten her mother to not brag about it, and so far the teachers were just teaching her what they taught everyone else. That was the way Gabriella wanted it at the moment, she didn't want people to think that she was some nerd who enjoyed lots of homework. She didn't that image here again at the school.

* * *

The next day on the bus, Gabriella took a seat next to a brown haired boy with a stud through his ear. He didn't seem to care that she was sitting there, but he didn't try to make any friendly conversation. That was the way Gabriella liked it. When Troy got on the bus, he got the same big greeting how he had the day before. But this time she noticed his eyes immediately went to his seat, and when he found it empty, they quickly searched the rest of the bus until they reached her eyes. She broke the contact by quickly looking down at her cell-phone in her hand. When she looked up again, he was seating by himself, his legs up on the seat.

* * *

At school, after third period, Troy left a bunch of his friends, who were going to Technology. He had a free period. He went into the library and walked to the back of the library. There was a desk right at the back, behind a row of ancient dictionaries which hadn't been touched in years. Not many people went back there, and he was always the only one back there when he had his free period. When he rounded the corner to the desk, he spotted Gabriella curled up in a corner. She wasn't at the desk, but on the ground, leaning on a cushion from one of the chairs. She had a strand of hair between two of her fingers and was twirling it around. Her eyes were focused on her cell-phone and she was biting her lip viciously. 

"You know, if you bite too much of you lower lip, it's gonna get pretty munted," Troy stated as he leaned against the rack which held the dictionaries. Gabriella looked up at him with a frightened expression. But when she saw it was him, she rolled her eyes and looked back at her cell-phone. "You _know _you're not allowed cell-phone's on during school time."

"Do I look like I care?" She asked abruptly. "And do you mind? I was here by myself before, and I'd prefer to keep it that way." Troy lifted on eyebrow at her, not used to having cute girls blow him off like that.

"Feisty, aren't you?"

"Arrogant, aren't you?" Gabriella shot back. Troy's eyes hardened as he walked over to her and sat on a chair. "Why are you staying here?" She looked a bit nervous.

"I have a free period. I have nothing to do. A new girl has just said more insulting words to me than I have heard from any other person from this school. I'm interested," Troy's eyes had gone back to the friendly look they had before. Gabriella moved her feet and licked her lips quickly. "Where did you come from?" He asked, leaning back in his chair.

"Why do you care? Isn't there a group of cheerleaders who would prefer to talk to you?" Gabriella spat back. Troy glanced away and then back at her.

"Most of those cheerleaders are blonde, and if they aren't naturally blonde, they should be. They act as though I'm their hero or something," Troy muttered. Gabriella gave him a sharp look before saying,

"You're blonde." Troy blinked at her for a moment, and then laughed lightly. Gabriella found that she didn't really mind him laughing—especially since he had a nice laugh. His eyes lit up and danced, and two dimples creased his cheeks. "Look, I don't mind if you stay here, but I want to finish this, so just stay quiet, 'kay?" Gabriella slipped her phone away and went on with some homework. There was a sarcastic retort on the tip of Troy's tongue, but he decided that it would be easier to just stay quiet. Especially if they were going to stay her together and he was going to be able to try an decipher her some more.

Unfortunately, all that he had figured out by the end of their free period, was that she had a Pinkalicious phone with silver cell-phone art, she had the word HATE scrawled in the margin of her textbook, and that her camisole under her low-cut top was purple. That wasn't going to help him in getting closer to her, and he felt annoyed at himself for that.

* * *

Next period was Math. Troy had always had trouble in Math, and he sat at his desk, half-heartedly doodling answers in. Most of his attention was focused on Gabriella. She wasn't in the class, but he could still remember everything about her. He remembered how a strand of hair always fell across her forehead, often shadowing her eye. She found it annoying, he picked up, because she kept pushing it away with an irritated sigh. He didn't know why he had spent the entire last period with her….he hardly even knew her! Although, she was cute…. 

"Mr Bolton?" Came the voice of the teacher. Troy's head snapped up. "Would you care to join us here on earth?" A few giggles came from the several cheerleaders in the class. Troy had the grace to blush and duck his head. The teacher shook her head and smiled at him. Troy was a sweet boy, it was a shame that he had such a high position in the school. It wasn't like she was a stereo-typer or anything, but when people were popular at school, it usually went to their head. Troy wasn't completely arrogant yet, but give or take a few more years, the sweet boy the teacher saw would be gone, and arrogance would have taken it's spot.

Troy felt a eyes on him, and looked up. Two of the cheerleaders were staring adoringly at him. Feeling self-conscious, Troy blushed again and went back to the Math in his book. That was one of the things he liked about Gabriella, she didn't stare at him like that. In fact, she didn't stare at him at all. She barely even looked at him! When she did, though, it sent shivers down his spine. Troy let out a quiet groan and slapped his forehead. _Gotta stop thinkin' 'bout her!!!! _He thought to himself. It was useless, though. The rest of the period, his mind was set on Gabriella.

* * *

It was lunch next, and Gabriella sat in the cafeteria alone. She had been sitting by herself for the past few days. She wanted to make friends, but she didn't at the same time. It happened every time: she made friends and then they found out about her home life, and dumped her just like that. She could usually handle it: it was normal for her. But something was different this time. This time, they could be here for longer than usual. Her father wasn't here. He was in prison, back where they used to live. She didn't really need to worry about people finding out about him. 

After a while, Gabriella got up from her seat and walked past a few tables to get to the rubbish bin. She dumped the rest of her lunch—most of her lunch—into the bin. Then she walked past a few more tables and pushed open the door to the hallway. The jock table gave her frowns, except for one blonde guy in particular. She didn't notice though, as she walked down the empty hallways.

"Hey! Gabriella!" Troy called as he jogged out of the cafeteria. Gabriella turned around in surprise as Troy caught up to her. He glanced over his shoulder as they turned the corner. They walked in silence for moment, the only noise coming from their shoes on the polished floors echoing around them.

"Is there something you wanted?" Gabriella asked after a few minutes. Troy shook his head. "Then why did you run after me?" She asked in confusion. Troy gave a short laugh.

"You make me sound like a Romeo or somethin'," Troy told her with a grin. Gabriella shrugged. "Well, I was gonna asked you something…" Troy bit his lower lip nervously. Gabriella surveyed him with a slight smile. "Well, I'm kinda having some trouble in Math. I saw your book in free period, and…..I was kinda hoping….if, you know….."

"Could help you?" Gabriella offered. Troy nodded appreciatively. "Well, I can, but not Monday or Thursday afternoons because I've got something on. Any other day of the week is free." Troy grinned at her.

"Great! Coz, like, I've got basketball practice Monday's and Thursday's. Um, tomorrow, my house?" Troy suggested. Gabriella thought about it for a moment and then slowly nodded. "I'm gonna warn you now: as soon as my dad sees you, he'll go straight into _oh-nice-new-girlfriend _mode, kay, so just ignore him.." Gabriella nodded and pushed strand of ebony hair away from her eyes. "Thanks! You're a life saver!" Troy grinned at her again before running back to the cafeteria. It was then Gabriella remembered she didn't know where he lived.

* * *

It was Thursday afternoon, and so Gabriella made her way to the address her mother had given her. It was a few blocks away from their house, so she could walk to it and home again. When she arrived, she heard yelling from inside. Not the yelling as in someone was on one side of the house and was communicating with someone on the other side of the house. It was more of the someone is angry and yelling at someone else. 

Gabriella chewed nervously on her lower lip and was about to walk up to the front door when a boy stormed out, taking no notice of her. Gabriella watched him go with frightened eyes. Then she turned back toward the house where a girl around twelve or thirteen.

"Um, Jeanette?" Gabriella asked. The girl nodded. Gabriella glanced after the boy and winced. "Who was that?" Jeanette Rodgers sighed and crossed her arms.

"Boyfriend. I just dumped him," Jeanette replied. Gabriella nodded slowly. "I still like him, just can't handle it right now," Jeanette shrugged. "You wanna come in?" Gabriella smiled and followed her into the house. "Um, next time, bring your togs. We got a spa pool, and it's great!" Jeanette grinned.

"Okay," Gabriella glanced around. There were still boxes everywhere from moving. Gabriella followed Jeanette into the kitchen and sat down on a barstool. She studied the younger girl as she walked around, getting herself a drink. She had sandy blonde hair which was tied back tightly in a knot. She hadn't smiled, but there were creases in her cheek which gave away the fact she had dimples when she smiled. Her eyes were a piercing blue, which reminded her of someone else. Gabriella shrugged, not being able to put a name on it. "Who looks after you the other days of the week?" Gabriella asked.

"Well, I'm out on Wednesday, I go to net-ball, and then I go back to my friends. Tuesdays and Fridays I go to my dad's house. He lives with my brother," Jeanette replied. "My brother can't look after me coz he's got sport practice, or he's just plain too lazy."

"Your brother that bad?" Gabriella asked with a smile.

"No," Jeanette admitted with a slight smile. "He's actually quite cool."

_Please review!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry I haven't updated in ages!!_

The next day on the bus after school, Gabriella made sure she was one of the first ones on. If she wasn't, she'd end up next to the guy who smelt like he hadn't had a shower in three years again. She sat a few seats in front of the backseat. Her eyes were trained out the window, as she didn't want to look at Troy when he got on. There was the usual scuffle as people rushed to get out of his way as he walked up the steps on the bus. Gabriella rolled her eyes. She didn't get it: sure, he was gorgeous, but he wasn't a prince or anything. Troy basically ignored his mates when they pointed at his saved seat, and moved down the aisle……right toward Gabriella. He stopped beside her and shot her a grin.

"This seat taken?" He asked her with a cocky grin. Gabriella looked up at him, seemingly unsure. She pursed her lips and tipped her head side-ways, a strand of hair coming loose from the hair-tie. She slowly shook her head and moved over a bit, aware of the looks they were getting from everyone around them. "I get off the stop before you, kay? Just follow me out."

"Yeah, I do know how to get off a bus," Gabriella said tersely, looking out the window. Troy looked at her for a moment, and then quickly turned away as a cheerleader flounced down the cluttered aisle of the bus and grasped his arm, smiling widely at him. She started going on about something which didn't mean anything to Troy, but he listened anyway, knowing he wasn't going to get anymore conversation out of Gabriella. When they came to Troy's stop, there were even more looks from people as she followed him out. Most of the cheerleaders were glaring.

"Just ignore the cheerleading robots," Troy muttered to her as they stepped off the bus. As it pulled away from the curb, people leaned out of the window and yelled good-bye out to Troy. Troy flashed them a smile and waved. Gabriella just turned her back and waited for Troy to show her the way to his house. "It's about five minutes walk, sorry," Troy told her as they started walking down the road. "And I usually stop at the café for a bit." Gabriella shrugged and followed him in silence. Troy frowned slightly, but didn't say anything. "Are…are you okay, or are you just naturally this quiet?" Gabriella gave him a pointed glance and he shrugged. "Just askin'. No-one seems to know anything about you."

"And that's the way I'd prefer to keep it," Gabriella said abruptly and turned her head in the other direction. Troy pursed his lips and then stopped. Gabriella turned to look at him in surprise. "What?"

"You seem sweet, but you also seem angry at the world," he said wisely. Gabriella narrowed her eyes. "Why? What horrible thing has everyone else done to you to make you so angry?" Gabriella tugged at the strand of loose hair which hung by her eye and didn't reply. "You can only make friends if you open up to someone," his gaze was intense.

"Who said that I wanted to make friends?" Gabriella replied with flashing eyes. Troy looked slightly confused.

"Everyone wants friends," he said.

"I don't," Gabriella answered snappily. "If the only reason you asked me to come over was because you wanted to research my background then I'm gonna go home." Troy realized that she was serious and jumped forward, grasping her hand.

"No!" He said. She blinked, and he realized that he had shouted. "Uh, sorry," he felt himself flush. "I didn't mean to interrogate you." Gabriella slowly nodded. They both just stared at each other, before they both realized that they were basically holding hands. "Oh, uh…" Troy quickly pulled his hand away and shoved it deep into his jean pocket, along with the other one. Gabriella folded her hands and then started walking again, not waiting for Troy. He jogged to catch up with her, and they walked in silence for a bit more. They past a small café which over-looked a park and Troy paused. "Uh…can we take five?"

"Whatever," Gabriella mumbled. She followed him into the café. He led the way into the café and to the counter. The woman behind the counter recognized him and greeted him with a smile. She glanced at Gabriella and then gave Troy a small, knowing smile.

"The usual, Troy?" The waitress said. Troy nodded. "And what does your girlfriend want?" She turned her playful, green eyes toward Gabriella. Gabriella narrowed her eyes at the ground and snapped under her breath,

"I'm not his girlfriend."

"Sure, honey," the waitress said, sounding unbelieving. "So what did you want?" Gabriella was still annoyed at the comment about being Troy's girlfriend, and just stared at the ground sullenly. Troy shrugged and the waitress rolled her eyes. "You guys go get a seat, I'll bring over your cheesecake and latte." Troy gave the waitress a sympathetic smile before leading Gabriella to a table near the back. A few girls were sitting in the table in front of them, and they cast an appreciative glance in Troy's direction as he walked past. They gave him flirtatious look. Troy smiled back as he passed and slipped into a seat next to Gabriella. Gabriella gave him a cold look and moved her seat over purposefully.

"_Why _do you have to be so difficult?" Troy groaned, resting his head in his hands. Gabriella shrugged and trained her eyes in the opposite direction. "I've always been nice to you, and you…you just can't manage even _politeness _back." Gabriella glanced down at hands and then quickly and Troy before looking away.

"Don't be nice to me, okay?" She mumbled. "It'll only make things easier." Troy frowned slightly and shifted his seat closer. "No, don't…" Gabriella drifted off. He slowly reached over and held her hand. She tensed up, but then slowly relaxed. He slowly twined his fingers between hers and Gabriella tensed up again. She was used to guys coming on her, she was pretty, but it was never anyone she really liked back.

It wasn't until then that she realized that she _did _really like him back. She felt her hand start to sweat and she didn't know what to do. She had had boyfriends, but there was nothing serious, they were only friends, really. Troy seemed to give off the impression he wanted to be more than friends.

"Here ya go, honey," the waitress said as she came over and placed a plate with a cheesecake and a latte. She noticed their linked hands and winked at Troy before walking off. Troy didn't want to let go of Gabriella's, hand, but he realized he would look pretty strange if he just watched his latte grow cold and cheesecake congeal. He reluctantly released Gabriella's hand and bit into the cheesecake. He noticed Gabriella flexed her hand and then slid it into the pocket in her hoodie. Troy noticed a slight flush creeping up her neck, and there was a rosy pink color in her cheeks. Troy finished off his cheesecake and moved onto the latte, slowly sipping it from the polystyrene cup. Gabriella watched the ground intently, avoiding looking at him completely. Troy paused and then touched her arm, feeling her jump slightly underneath his touch.

"We can go now, I can drink on the way," Troy told her. Gabriella nodded and ducked her head, following him out of the café. The waitress followed them with her eyes and then turned to another waitress.

"She seems okay. A lil rough around the edges," she noted. The other waitress grinned and nodded her agreement. "She's a lot better than the other ditzy cheerleaders who follow him in," she snorted in distaste. "Hopefully they hook up, they make a cute couple." The other waitress laughed lightly and went off to serve another customer.

Troy and Gabriella walked up the road of his house, Troy just finishing his latte. Gabriella glanced at him and then in front of her again. Troy slowed down and then pointed at a two-storied house in front of them. Gabriella slowly took it all in and tried not to let her impressed expression on her face. She followed Troy up to the concreted driveway and he pushed open the wooden door leading into the house. Gabriella slipped off her shoes and trailed shyly after Troy, hearing someone call from another room. Troy walked off, leaving Gabriella to stay in the lounge, standing aimlessly and not knowing what to do. Troy returned a moment later with a plate containing freshly baked garlic bread. Gabriella raised her eyebrow and Troy rolled his eyes.

"Sandra is always cooking. She thinks every small thing to eat has to be turned into an elaborate meal," Troy said. Gabriella was about to ask who Sandra was, but then a tall, dark-skinned woman walked in, holding another plate containing savory scone things. She placed it down on the table in the lounge and turned to Troy and started talking.

"¿Troy, que es su amigo?" Sandra Marcoz smiled at Troy as he gave her an exasperated look. "Usted debe haber reconocido algunas de aquellas palabras."

"I don't know what you just said! Stop stalking to me in Spanish!" He cried out in exasperation. Gabriella smiled at the ground and then turned her attention to the Spanish woman standing next to Troy.

"Mi nombre es Gabriella, y no soy realmente un amigo de Troy, yo sólo enseñarlo en Matemáticas," she said. Sandra grinned at Gabriella and gave her a little clap. Troy frowned in surprise and then crossed his arms as Sandra shot Troy a pointed look.

"You should be as good as this young girl….perhaps she could teach you some Spanish as well as tutoring," Sandra said. Troy blinked.

"Huh? How did you know she was tutoring me?!" He cried out.

"She just told me," Sandra said as she walked out of the room, shooting Gabriella another smile. Troy looked a bit put-out as he picked up the garlic bread plate, indicated that Gabriella pick up the other plate, and then walked towards stairs at the other end of the room. Gabriella followed him up the stairs and then into a room down the hallway. There were big basketball photos on the wall, mostly of Michael Jordan and other famous players. There were photos of his friends at school and different newspaper articles featuring the Wild-Cats sitting on the desk and then stereo with two speakers above his bed.

Gabriella sat down on his bed and slipped off her bag, dropping it to the floor. She spread her fingers through the fuzzy duvet and looked around the room slowly, taking in everything. Troy watched her sitting there and realized how nervous he felt. Sure there had been girls in his room before, but they were mostly cheerleaders whom his mates brought to his house when they were going out with them. It was different with Gabriella. She was real, and not plastic and fake like the other girls. And that made her far more gorgeous than any other cheerleader. Troy pulled his chair from his desk so it was in front of Gabriella, and sat down on it, pulling out his Math homework.

"So, what part are you having difficulty on?" Gabriella asked, leaning closer to him. Troy had to force himself to concentrate, although her nearness was making it difficult for him to even remember to breathe. He wordlessly opened the book and flicked to his current page, which was filled with scribbled and lots of crossed out marks. She bit back a grin when she saw the work and pulled out the work-sheet he had to work off. "Fractions…oh, these are so easy!" She cried and nudged him. "The Wild-Cat superstar shouldn't be having difficulty with _these_!" Troy glared at her, but then had to grin as she pulled the Math book onto her lap, forcing him to sit beside her so that he could see the work. She pointed to the first equation and troy ducked his head to her level. Gabriella started explaining the equation to him and Troy listened intently.

"….So what you're saying, is that I can do all fractions on the calculator?" Troy asked in disbelief. Gabriella gave him a small smile and nodded. "And all along I thought it was something hard!" Gabriella gave him another smile and then stood up, picking up her bag and slinging\her bag over her shoulder. Troy stood up and followed her downstairs. They stopped in the foyer.

"Well, see ya," she said as she opened the door. Troy stepped forward again and touched the door-knob.

"You don't want me to walk you home?" He asked her. Gabriella thought for a moment and then shook her head. "You sure?" She rolled her eyes and took a few steps down the drive-way.

"I _do _know where I live," Gabriella told him with a slight smile before she turned and walked down the drive-way. Troy watched her go, walk down the driveway. Sandra appeared by his side and smiled as she shut the door. Troy had a slightly dreamy look on his face.

"Ella es una muchacha hermosa," she said. Troy raised an eyebrow in confusion, but then shrugged and walked back upstairs to his room. The finished Math lay on his bed, and the empty plates sat on his desk. He could still slightly smell Gabriella's Impulse perfume. He flopped down on his bed and stared up at the ceiling. He was filled with a weird feeling, kind of light….Troy sighed and turned on his stereo, flicking on the latest song by Bone Thugs N Harmony feat. Akon called _I Tried. _

Gabriella walked home slowly, scuffing her sneakers along the concrete. She was smiling slightly as she walked up the front path to her new house. Her mother was in the kitchen, making dinner. Gabriella walked in and smiled brightly at Ms Montez before walking up to her room. Smiling.

_Please review!!_


	4. Chapter 4

_I've just posted a Jelsi oneshot called _Hide Behind Me _if anyone is after a short, fluffy Jelsi story, so yeah...Hope you like._

Dinner was quiet as Gabriella and her mother ate. All that could be heard was the clinking of the utensils against the plate and the clock ticking above the fireplace. There was never much conversation, since Mr Montez had never liked talking at the dinner table, so the habit had remained. As soon as Gabriella finished, she stood up from the table and walked out of the room, carrying her glass and her plate. As she washing her dishes, she heard her mother come in the door behind her. Gabriella gave her a small smile and then started drying her dishes.

"I had a, um…surprising phone call at work today," Mrs Montez began. Gabriella finished her dishes and picked them up to put them in cupboard. "It was from your father." The dishes dropped from Gabriella's hands and fell to the ground, smashing on the tiled ground. "Oh, Gabriella!" Mrs Montez said in an annoyed voice and hurried to get the broom. Gabriella took in a deep breath and licked her lips quickly. When her mother came back in the room, Gabriella was picking up the pieces of her plate and glass. "You're as clumsy as your father," she muttered as she began to sweep up the smaller bits. That was another lie which they told everyone, Gabriella noted.

"He wasn't clumsy, he was violent," Gabriella muttered and got some newspaper to wrap the glass and china up in. Mrs Montez made a small noise before sweeping the pieces into the newspaper Gabriella had put down. Gabriella wrapped up the glass and chine and then dumped it in the bin. "So what did he want?" She asked abruptly as she turned around.

"He was just saying hello and he wished you would call him," Mrs Montez replied. Gabriella snorted and rolled her eyes. "He's your father," Mrs Montez said sharply. Gabriella rolled her eyes again and looked up at her mother as she shoved her hands in her pockets.

"Wouldn't be if I had any say in it," Gabriella stated angrily. "I don't know how you could listen to him and then talk about him so naturally. He _hit _you. He used to _shout _at you. You've got bruises and scars to prove it!" Gabriella yelled. Mrs Montez grasped Gabriella's arm and pulled her closer.

"Don't speak about your father! He was wrong, and now he's paying for it! You can't expect anything more!" Mrs Montez snapped at her daughter. Gabriella wrenched her arm out of her mothers grasp and glared at her. "He didn't mean to do it," Mrs Montez said in a weak voice which proved she didn't believe what she said. Gabriella sneered.

"You don't believe that for one second and neither do I!" Gabriella left the room and stormed up to her room. She slammed her door shut and flicked the lock across. Then she climbed onto her bed and drew her knees up to her chest, resting her head in them. The tears pricked at the corners of her eyes and then they flowed freely down her cheeks.

* * *

Troy sat in his bed at home. He was almost scared of the quiet which loomed in the house. He was so used to voices of his parents echoing through the walls, the sounds of them shouting and yelling at each other. He was glad they weren't fighting, but eh quiet was something he wasn't quite used to. Plus, his little sister wasn't there anymore. It still hurt him that they had taken his sister away from him, leaving him with Sandra and his dad, who was barely even home most of the time. 

Troy got out of his bed and pulled on jeans over his boxer shorts. Then he pulled on a tee-shirt and a hoodie before walking to his window and climbing out. He shimmied down the side of the house and landed quietly in a pile of leaves on the wet ground. Pushing his shaggy hair away from his eyes he walked softly away from the house, down the path and onto the street.

* * *

Mrs Montez had been banging on Gabriella's door for a while and trying to coax her out of the room with no avail. She had finally given up around eleven and gone to bed. Gabriella was still dressed and sitting on her bed. She didn't want to stay in the house for any longer, so she got up and walked over to her balcony doors, opening them. She closed them after her and climbed down the tree beside the balcony. Walking out the gate and onto the lawn, Gabriella wondered if it was really safe to be out at night with no one else. Deciding she didn't care, Gabriella kept walking up the street.

* * *

Troy sat on a swing in the park. The wind was picking up and battering at his hoodie and chilling his already cold skin. He pulled the hoodie closer around him and shivered again. He didn't notice as someone stepped out of the shadows of the tree and toward him as he swung back and forth on the swing. When someone spoke softly behind him, he turned around quickly. 

"Hey," Gabriella murmured. Troy turned around in the swing and looked back at her.

"What are you doing out here?" He asked in an urgent voice, standing up and staring at her with wide eyes. "It's midnight and it's dark and this is the park and there could be anyone around. Someone could mug you or rape you or—" Gabriella let out a slight giggle and covered his mouth with her hand. Troy stopped talking and took a deep breath.

"Are you planning on doing any of the above?" She asked him. He shook his head. "Well, then, I have nothing to worry about, do I?" She took her hand away from his mouth and wandered over to the swing next to his. "I just wanted to go for a walk," she said by way of explanation. "And why should I explain myself to you anyway? You're out here at this unheard of hour as well, in case you haven't realized." Troy rolled his eyes and sat back down on his swing next to her.

"I'm a guy, and I can look after myself. You're a girl and…" Troy trailed off.

"So you think you can't look after myself?" Gabriella asked. Troy glanced at her, and in the dark he could make out the look of defiance in her face. She stood up and moved in front of him. "I bet I could take you on." Troy snorted and stood up, towering over the petite Filipino. She looked up at him and he couldn't see any fear at all in her eyes. Troy looked down at her, shaking his head.

"I'm far taller than you," he pointed out. Gabriella shrugged.

"What's that got to do with anything? It's quality that counts, not quantity," Gabriella replied. "You couldn't hurt me even if you tried." Troy looked down at her defiant eyes and thought about how much he wanted to kiss her. But the way she was looking up at him, he doubted very much that was what she was thinking.

"I can't hurt you, that just ain't right, to hit a girl," Troy confessed. Gabriella gave him a small smile and shook her head.

"It won't hurt me," she told him.

"How do you know? I'm pretty strong, you know," Troy told her, starting to feel a little indignant. Gabriella gave him another smile.

"I bet you are, but strength isn't everything," Gabriella pointed out. "Go on, try to punch me."

"I can't, not to a girl," Troy replied.

"You too scared?" She asked in a teasing voice. Troy narrowed his eyes playfully at her.

"Troy Bolton ain't scared of anything," Troy announced in a proud voice. Gabriella rolled her eyes and took a step closer to him, her chest pushed up against him and his breath caught in his throat as he looked nervously down at her. Gabriella leaned up and whispered in his ear,

"Except to hit a girl." Troy had a bit of difficulty breathing as she stepped away from him again and put her hands in front of her, palms upward. "Just go, it doesn't have to be hard." Troy finally relented and threw a light punch at her stomach. Gabriella blocked it, twisting his wrist firmly around so that Troy let out a squeak of protest. "Try again," she said as she let him go. Troy frowned and chewed slightly on his lower lip. He faked a kick to her leg and then threw a harder punch at her arm. Gabriella kicked his ankle sharply, caught his arm, and twisted it behind his back.

"Okay…okay, peace," he panted. Gabriella smiled slightly and let him go. Troy took a few steps away and held his arms, giving her a strange look. "You're a weird chick." Gabriella crossed her arms and gave him the evils. "But in the good way," he rushed on to say. "Any girl at school would be too scared of breaking a nail to even _try _to do that."

"Well, I guess I'm different from the girls at school," Gabriella replied as she hugged her arms around her, trying to keep warm with only her thin sweater on. "I mean, I don't really care what other people care about me…plus, my nails are already all broken," she added with a slight giggle, holding up one of her hands. Troy took it in his and examined her fingernails, and then started caressing her hand with his. Gabriella's breathing hitched as his hand rubbed against hers.

"Oh, so Ms Montez is scared now?" He said in a teasing voice. "Scared to touch a guy?" Gabriella narrowed her eyes and clamped her fingers down on top of his. "Oh, well, you just needed to ask if you _really _wanted to hold my hand…" he continued teasing. Her small hand loosened it's grip, but Troy held onto her hand, not wanting to let go. He stared down into her eyes and murmured, "Gabi…"

"Gabriella," she murmured back and then leaned up and kissed him quickly on the cheek. Troy was so shocked he released her hand. Gabriella gave him one last smile before turning around and walking away. Troy's fingers went to his cheek as he stared after the retreating figure. He still didn't want her to be out at night alone, but he knew that she would be annoyed if he followed her. He stayed where he was for a few more moments, before heading off in the direction of home.

* * *

The next morning, when Gabriella got on the bus, she was uncertain of where to sit. She was sure that Troy wouldn't mind if she sat in his seat again—although she would get glares from the cheerleaders and then basketball team, especially from one boy with pompom-like hair—but then she didn't know how he felt about her. She had kissed _him _not the other way around. She made her way to a seat near the back of the bus and sat down. 

When Troy got on, there was the usual commotion and then he stood beside his seat and glanced around. A few of his mates gave him strange looks, and Chad Danforth, the one with the afro said,

"Dude, sit."

"Hold on, man," Troy murmured as he surveyed the bus. His eyes finally landed on Gabriella, who was sitting alone with her eyes trained on her hands. Troy gave his mates a slight wave before walking down the aisle of the bus and sitting in the seat next to Gabriella. There was an unusual silence as the bus started moving again, and Gabriella felt herself going red. It was the same sort of silence which had happened when Gabriella had sat in ' Troy's' seat and it made her uncomfortable and nervous.

"Just ignore them," Troy murmured in her ear. Gabriella tensed up as his breath warmed her neck. She nodded and then went back to intently studying her hands. Troy moved one of his hands so it was next of hers, and he lightly brushed her fingers. She tensed up beside him and Troy grinned, glad he was the one making her nervous this time. "So you _are _scared of guys, Montez?" He teased her lightly.

"Definitely not," Gabriella retorted. Troy grinned at her again and then took her hand in his. Gabriella glanced down at their hands and blushed again as a cheerleader flounced over and saw them holding hands. She flicked her long hair back and looked at Troy, pointedly ignoring Gabriella.

"So, Troy, are you coming to the party on Friday? It's gonna be, like, _totally _awesome!" She touched his arm and gave him a huge grin. "Jenna's parents are away for the weekend and she's gonna get her older brother to bring some beer over." The blonde cheerleader ran a finger down his arm and smiled widely at him. Troy shifted his arm away from her slightly and replied.

"Um, I dunno, I have to be in bed early…you know, I got the game the next morning," he replied, sounding sort of nervous. Gabriella felt him hold her hand slightly tighter. "I have to be ready and all…" the blonde laughed again.

" Chad and Zeke are coming, and I'm pretty sure I can persuade the rest of them," she said. Troy shrugged and gave her a nervous smile again.

"I don't know, Louise, I'll think about it," Troy told her and then turned his head in the opposite direction, dismissing her firmly and looking at Gabriella. Louise Anthony shot Gabriella a look filled with disdain and dislike and walked back to her seat in the front of the bus. Gabriella nudged Troy with her shoulder and nodded toward a bunch of Troy's basketball mates, who were all giving them curious looks.

"Your mates," she began. "They seem a bit shocked." Troy laughed slightly and entwined his fingers through hers. He leaned over and kissed her lightly on the cheek, getting even more curious looks from his mates.

_I thought the park scene was quite cute. It came out so naturally, and I didn't want to touch it, incase it lost it's originality (or however you spell it!!)_

_Please review!!_


	5. Chapter 5

_I know, I've updated quickly, huh, but I've had a bit of extra time on my ahdns adn have managed to get some more written, so that's good! If guys haven't already seen it, go onto YouTube and check out the new song from _High School Musical 2 _called _You Are The Music In Me. _It's so adorable between Troy and Gabi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Also, I love the song by Zac Efron (Drew Seeley?) called _Bet On It!! _It's great!_

In Maths class, Gabriella was introduced to another girl named Taylor McKessie. She was pretty smart and solved all of the equations, along with Gabriella. When they were walking out of the class, Taylor said,

"So, were you in any teams at your old school?" Gabriella shrugged and replied,

"Not really. I was in the Science Decathlon Team for a bit at one school, but then I had to drop out. Things are really busy for me and my ma, and we're always moving around a lot because of my dad." Taylor smiled at Gabriella and squeezed her arm as they walked into the cafeteria. "And I was also in the Maths Decathlon Team for a few months at my last school." Taylor looked extremely excited.

"I'm in the Decathlon Team here, and we could really use your help!" Taylor told her as they made their way threw the hordes of students. Gabriella winced and answered,

"I don't know. I can probably get to the meetings, but I don't want to make any commitments, just in case we move again," Gabriella told Taylor. Taylor raised her eyebrows as she got a tray from a pile and lined up at the place for hot food. "I mean, I've moved to so many new schools in the past few years, it's kind of difficult to get settled in, if we're just gonna move again." Taylor nodded and picked up a plate of lasagna and put it on her tray and then got out a coke from the miniature fridge and lined up to pay. Gabriella had only got a coke and a MoroGold bar which she paid for after Taylor. As they were walking toward on of the only empty seats in the cafeteria, Taylor began,

"You said you move around a lot because of your dad, what does he do?" Gabriella opened her mouth to reply, trying to think quickly, but was saved when a certain blonde-haired, blue-eyed person appeared at her side. " Troy," Taylor said with a slight smile. "You've met Gabriella?"

"Yeah, uh…yeah," Gabriella smiled slightly at Troy. He smiled back, and then turned around as someone called out his name. Chad ran over with Zeke Baylor and Jason Cross. Taylor's face immediately clouded as Chad bounded to Troy's side and looked at the two girls.

"Danforth," Taylor snapped.

"McKessie," Chad replied in a snipped tone. Gabriella raised an eyebrow as her new best-friend and Troy's best-friend both had a stare-down. Well, it was more like a glare-down. Troy seemed used to it, as he just turned to the other two and said,

"Guys, this is Gabriella. Gabriella, this is Zeke and Jason." Gabriella smiled at the two of them. Zeke shook her hand, and Jason gave her a wary smile. "Um, do you wanna go for a walk?" Troy asked, turning to Gabriella. She glanced at Taylor, who was still frowning at Chad. "Don't worry about those two, they've been like that since primary school." Gabriella licked her lips nervously, and the nodded. Zeke and Jason made to follow them, but Troy shot them a glare and they stayed with the glaring couple.

Troy led her through the main building and then up a stairway. They got to the second floor and he pulled her through another door and they went up a stairway which was a bit less used than the other stairways. Gabriella was about to say something when Troy pushed open a door and fresh air rushed into the slightly stuffy corridor. Troy pulled her up stairs and she looked around where he had taken her as he released her arm.

"Where are we?" She asked him, going over to the railing and looking around.

"On top of the school…away from everyone," Troy told her. "The Science Club, Taylor and her mates, do all these. And since the Science Club created this place, none of my mates know it's here…especially Chad," Troy laughed slightly. "It's kinda funny, he says he'll go anywhere to avoid Taylor, but he always manages to end up next to her in an argument." Gabriella raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

"Well…he likes her," she said matter-a-factly. Troy let out a short laugh and turned to face her with a _duh _look on his face.

"You don't say," he told her. Gabriella smiled slightly and sat down on the seat beside the railing. Troy was unsure of whether to sit down next o her or not, so he just sat on the wooden armrest on the other side of the seat. "They've both been crushing on each other for years, and it drives tot rest of us insane. We try to push them together, but...they never seen to listen to us." Gabriella pushed a strand of hair away from her hair and Troy tried not to stare as she looked around and then back at him.

"So, what about you? You have a girlfriend?" Gabriella asked idly. She wanted to know, but she tried not to show on her face that she was eager to hear. Troy glanced at her, trying to read the expression on her face, but she kept it skillfully blank. He shook his head and shrugged.

"Nah, I've never had a girlfriend," he replied. At this point, Gabriella's mouth dropped. Troy started laughing at this. It was the same reaction he got from most people—girls, in particular—when he told them this. He knew his own friends were still surprised he had never had a girlfriend yet. He had hooked up with plenty of girls at parties, but he had never actually gone steady with one girl at a time. "That's right; never had a girlfriend." Gabriella started laughing and then blinked slightly as she realized that he was serious. She narrowed her eyes and pushed a strand of hair away from her eyes and blinked again.

"Are you serious? You've never had a girlfriend?" She asked unbelievingly. Troy nodded. "But you have kissed someone, right?" Troy nodded again.

"Yeah, course!" Gabriella laughed again, but this time it sounded slightly forced. Troy noticed, but didn't say anything about it. "So, tell me something. You live with your parents?" Gabriella stopped laughing.

"Just my ma. My dad…my dad stayed back where we used to live," Gabriella told him. She didn't like lying to him, but she was basically telling the truth. "I don't have any brothers and sisters, and my cousins live in either Australia or Canada." Troy nodded. "What about you? I know you have a dad, but your ma wasn't there. She live with you?" Troy shifted his gaze else-place as he answered her question.

"My parents just…separated. My mum took my little sister," Troy answered. _Which is probably a good thing, _he thought, _knowing my dad. _"I still get to see her on Tuesday's and Friday's, though, so that's cool." Something rang in the back of Gabriella's mind, but she shrugged it off. "My dads name is Jack and my mums name is Diane. She works as a secretary in an office." Gabriella grinned at him and told him,

"So does my ma!" Troy grinned back. "My ma's great. She works really hard but when she isn't working hard, she makes the _best _dinners _ever_." Troy laughed at her dramatic face. "Hey, when you try one of her meals, you'll know what I'm talking about!" Troy paused for a moment, a twinkle in his eyes as he recapped on her words. "What?" Gabriella asked in confusion.

"Did you just invite me on a date?" Troy asked coyly. Gabriella blinked in confusion and then realized what she had said. She blushed bright red and shook her head quickly.

"No, no, of course!" Gabriella cried.

"You mean, you don't want to go on a date with me?" Troy asked. Gabriella registered what he was saying and quickly shook her head again.

"No, I didn't say that!"

"So what day suits?" He asked her. Gabriella closed and eyes and breathed out. She quickly registered what was happening and then let out a confused,

"Uh………" Troy laughed at her confused expression. "How about…Friday night?" Troy thought for a moment, before replying,

"Yeah, sure."

The bell then rang, and both of them ran down the stairs.

* * *

Since it was Thursday, Gabriella was baby-sitting again. Jeanette seemed a bit upset about something, but Gabriella didn't push it. They changed into their togs and then went downstairs to the indoor pool. Jeanette had a one-piece, but Gabriella was in a brown bikini with wooden beads around the ties. Jeanette smiled at Gabriella as she sat down on the side of the pool and put her feet in the water. 

"I wish my brother would date someone like you," she said. Gabriella raised her eyebrows quizzically and laughed slightly. "No, seriously. I don't know if he has ever actually had a girlfriend, even though I know plenty of girls who like him." Once again, alarm bells went in Gabriella's head, but she ignored them and smiled at Jeanette.

* * *

"Hey, dad? Is it all right if I go over to a friends house for dinner?" Troy asked through the bed-room door. There was no reply, and so Troy walked in. "Dad?...Dad!" Troy let out a frustrated shout as he crossed the room to where his father was slumped in a chair. "Dad, you gotta stop doing this!" He grasped the Vodka bottle from his hands and put it on the dresser and then walked into the adjoining bathroom and wet a cloth. Then he came back and handed it to his father. Mr Bolton groaned in his seat and pressed the cloth to his forehead. Troy clenched his teeth together, stopping himself from yelling out in frustration. "I'll get you some water," Troy muttered as he stomped out of the room. Mr Bolton moaned slightly but Troy didn't care. 

He was glad that Sandra wasn't here. She still hadn't found out about Mr Bolton's weakness, although it wouldn't be long now.

Troy filled a glass with cold water and then walked back upstairs, silently handing it to his father. Mr Bolton took it and took a long swig, drinking almost all of it. Troy sat down on the bed and waited until his father looked slightly better than before. Then he took the glass of water away and handed back the damp cloth. Finally, Mr Bolton squinted up at Troy and said slowly,

"Were you asking me something?"

"Yeah, um…a mate invited me over to dinner on Friday. Can I go?" Troy asked again. Mr Bolton nodded. "Cool," Troy got up and purposefully picked up the vodka bottle on his way out. He walked downstairs and tipped the remainder of the vodka down the sink, watching the liquid trail away. Obviously Mr Bolton hadn't had too much, or he would be in his angry-violent stage which he often reached, but he would be slight tipsy for the next few hours. It was a good with his sister wasn't coming over today."

* * *

"Hey, ma? I, uh," Gabriella wondered how to word it to her mother. "I invited a boy from school over for dinner on Friday, and I promised him you'd make one of your famous meals." Mrs Montez turned around and gave Gabriella a wide smile which she knew a little too well. "No, ma, no! He's just a friend. I barely know him. I just said something and he mistook it and thought I had asked him out, and…well, he somehow got himself invited over for dinner." Gabriella winced inwardly with how pathetic it sounded. Mrs Montez laughed and shook her head. 

"Yeah, that's fine, Gabi," Mrs Montez said. Gabriella looked at her mother sharply. "Absolutely fine." Gabriella rolled her eyes and walked out of the room, her mother still chuckling in the lounge.

* * *

The next day on the bus, Troy once again surprised everyone by taking the seat next to Gabriella. This time, she managed a small smile at him. He gave her a wide smile back as he put his folder on his lap and held out a scrap of paper, folded over a few times. She took in and gave him a curious look. 

"My cell number and e-mail," he told her. Gabriella nodded. "And my dad said that I could come."

"Oh, yeah, right, so did my ma……can I borrow some paper?" She asked. Troy nodded and handed her a slip. Gabriella quickly wrote her e-mail and number. Troy grinned when he saw her e-mail address: SW33T!3-P!3. She blushed when she saw him grinning. "I made it when I was nine, so don't diss it!" She tried to sound annoyed, but didn't succeed. Troy laughed lightly.

"Sweetie Pie. It's original. No worries, it's cute," he told her. They both froze and then looked in opposite directions as they realized what he had said. A few cheerleaders had overheard as well, and they sent more death glares in Gabriella's direction. She nudged him and nodded in their direction, and Troy sent a smile at the cheerleaders, whose facial expressions immediately changed from devils to angels. When Troy turned back to Gabriella, she noted that once again, they had a major face change. "When I said 'it's cute', I, uh, I did mean the e-mail address." She nodded quickly.

"Of course, what else could you have meant?" She quickly said. And he nodded along with her.

_Please review!_


	6. Chapter 6

_I hope 'the date' lives up to everyone's expectations. I couldn't make it too deep, coz...well, in reality, I know _I _don't start kissing I guy I have just met, so this isn't a kissy-kissy chapter! Trying to involve Chad and Taylor in this one!_

That Friday, for some reason, Gabriella found herself feeling nervous. She had given the address and everything Troy needed to get to her house. He had said he wanted to take his sister to a movie, so he would be there about six. She got into black skinny-jeans, a white halter-neck and a black hoodie, with silver writing scrawled across the back, saying _Naughty Girl. _Her hair was down, and she had a thick, black headband in. Mrs Montez looked amused as Gabriella finally came downstairs ten minutes before six o'clock.

"Your cell-phone went off a few minutes ago," Mrs Montez told her. Gabriella nodded and walked over to where her pink cell-phone sat on the counter. She had one new text-message, and it was from Taylor.

_Hey, bebe. U nervouz wit ur date 2nite? _

Gabriella rolled her eyes and texted back.

_It aint a date. We r barly frends. _

Taylor texted back a few minutes later.

_Woteva. _

_Wot's dat meant 2 mean? _

Gabriella frowned in confusion. Of course it wasn't a date. Well, her mum was gonna be there the whole time, what kinda date was that? And they couldn't be more than friends, they had only known each other several weeks.

_From wot I hear from Chad, u n Troy r da next big ting. _

_Den Chad iz rong. _

_I dont tink so. _

_Oh shut up. _

_U no Im rite. _

_Im goin. _

_U got a date wit Troy da b.ball boy!!! _

_Im gon. _

Gabriella flicked out of the texting screen and into her pictures. There was one she had shot of Chad and Taylor after school on the bus. It was in the middle of a big argument of theirs, but in the photo, they didn't look like they were arguing. Also, Gabriella had decorated the outline of pink hearts. She posted it to Taylor's number. A few minutes, the door-bell went. Gabriella walked to the door and opened it. Troy stood on the doorstep, looking drop-dead gorgeous in jeans and button down baby-blue top. Gabriella licked her lips nervously and smiled.

"Come in," she said, holding the door open. Her phone then started ringing the ring-tone _The Way I Are _by Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson. Gabriella laughed slightly as she saw the caller was Taylor. "Sup, Tay, did you get my—"

"HOW DARE YOU DO THAT?!?!?!? I'M GONNA KILL YOU, GABRIELLA!!!!!" Came Taylor's voice down the small phone. Gabriella held it away from her ear and Troy raised an eyebrow, because he could hear the ause being shouted from where he was standing, a metre or so away. "JUST COZ I WAS TELLING THE _TRUTH _ABOUT YOU AND TROY DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN GO AND SEND ME FALSE PICTURES!!!!!" Troy looked pretty confused when he heard his name shouted through the small speaker. Gabriella rolled her eyes and kept the phone away from her until the ranting had stopped.

"Tay? I think my ear-drums burst," Gabriella finally told her mate down the phone. Taylor had stopped shouting, and Gabriella could hear her breathing heavily into the phone. "And Troy looks pretty confused as well." There was still no reply. "I'm going to go now, kay?"

"Fine," Taylor grumbled.

"What was that about?" Troy asked, when Gabriella flicked her phone shut. Gabriella just rolled her eyes and slipped her phone into the pocket of her hoodie. "Oookkkaaayyy, girl stuff." Gabriella pointed down the hallway.

"Kitchen's just there, I just gotta go upstairs," she told him. Troy nodded and made his way down the hallway to where the kitchen was. Gabriella watched him for a moment before jogging upstairs to her room. She checked herself in the mirror, and pulled off her halter to look at her back. It was the first time she had worn a halter since her father had pushed her against the oven. The doctors had assured her that it would fade away in time, but at the moment, it was still there. It didn't look ugly or anything, but it was definitely noticeable. Gabriella sighed and pulled her hoodie up properly and looked at herself once more in the mirror before going back downstairs. "Ma…when's dinner?" She asked as she turned into the kitchen. She was quite stunned when she saw her mother and Troy.

Mrs Montez was laughing and holding her side, and Troy was laughing along with her, holding knives and forks in his hands. Gabriella raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms, waiting for them to finish laughing. Once the laughter subsided, the two seemed to realize that Gabriella was standing in the doorway. Mrs Montez brushed the tears away from her eyes and gave Gabriella a grin, before saying,

"You have a good choice in boys, Ell." Gabriella felt a slight blush creeping up her cheeks as she shook her head and walked over to the cupboard for glasses.

"He's just a mate, ma," Gabriella replied as she got three glasses and walked into the living room. Troy followed her and set three places at the table and Gabriella put down the three glasses. Then Mrs Montez came through and picked up her knife and fork and glass. "Uh, ma? What are you doing?" Mrs Montez raised an eyebrow at her and replied,

"You didn't honestly think I was going to stay with you, did you? A lady at work—the one who's girl you baby-sit—has offered to take me to a café down town. She says that her daughter is with her father tonight, so she's free." Gabriella bit on her lip and looked at Troy nervously. He seemed a bit puzzled as well, but gave Mrs Montez his special 'Troy' smile again. "I hope that's okay…she only asked me at work and it was sort of a split minute decision thing, and she seemed quite excited," Mrs Montez was saying. "Also, it would be nice to get to know some other people…since we just moved here." Gabriella nodded finally and shrugged.

"Okay, I s'pose," she trailed off and looked at a spot on the window. Mrs Montez gave Gabriella a quick hug.

"Okay, well, I'll go now then. All the food is cooked and just needs to be served. I will be back by midnight, and I'm hoping that you will be home by then Troy…if not, I'll give you a ride home," Mrs Montez said and then she was gone. Troy and Gabriella stood still where they were standing for several seconds in utter silence as they heard the front door slam and then a car start a little bit later. Then Troy glanced across at Gabriella.

"Do not think I put her up to it!" Gabriella quickly snapped. Troy held up his hands, palms upwards, in a sort of surrender sign.

"Don't worry, that's not what I was thinking!" He told her. Gabriella licked her lips nervously, spun on her heel and walked back into the kitchen. Troy followed after a few moments and they silently dished up dinner. Mrs Montez had made lasagna, one of her specialties, and also deep-fried chips and then mixed veges. "Do you wanna eat at the table? Or since your mum's not here, do you wanna watch a movie or something in the lounge?" Gabriella paused on her way out of the kitchen and thought for a moment.

"Okay, movie. But I get the couch," Gabriella replied as she picked her glass, a coke can and her utensils along with her dinner and going into the lounge.

"But the couch can fit at least three people! Why do you get it all to yourself?!" Troy protested as he followed her.

"Because you'll try and put your arm around me," Gabriella replied matter-a-factly. _How'd she know?! _Troy thought in annoyance. Then he realized it was the oldest trick in the book, and since she was absolutely gorgeous, so many guys must have tried it on her. Troy grumbled under his breath as Gabriella got out a stack of DVD's and put them on the table. "What one do you want to watch?" She asked, turning to face him. Troy crouched beside her on the low table and looked them over. They were mostly all chick-flicks, but there were a couple of horror movies in there.

"You watch _Saw III_?" He asked her, surprised. Gabriella let out a visible shiver and shook her head. "Does your mum?" Gabriella shook her head again. "Then why do you have it?"

"My dad…" she sounded vague. "He used to watch horror and thriller and stuff…I'll throw it out tomorrow…" Gabriella drifted off and leaned back on the back of the couch. Troy could hear and see that didn't look too comfortable about talking about her father, so he decided to shift the conversation back to movies.

"Are you kidding me?! Please tell me you do not like _How To Loose A Guy In 10 Days_?!" Troy asked in a tortured voice. Gabriella smiled slightly at him, blowing upwards to try and get a curl of hair away from her face as she shifted her position against the back of the couch. _She's so cute…_

"The first time I really liked it, but after the three hundredth, I guess I kinda got sick of it," she replied. "My mum loves it. She's got the huge crush on Matthew McConaughey. She's also got _Sahara _and _Wedding Planner _with him in it, as well. I swear, I'm totally sick of him, and I cannot watch any movie with him in it without smacking my head on a wall…" Gabriella rolled her eyes and folded her hands together across her stomach. Troy smiled at her and picked up three DVD's and leaned against the couch next to her, only a hair breadth away from her, and he could hear her breathing as he presented her with the DVD's. "Uh…can you read out the titles?" She asked, closing her eyes and leaning back.

"Huh? Why?" Troy asked her, his eyes reflecting his confusion.

"Coz I can't be bothered to read them," she replied. Troy bit back his grin. "And I know you're grinning at the moment, but I don't care. Read out the titles so we can start watching or else our food will get cold." Troy suddenly remembered that their dinner was sitting just a little way away from them, and that it would be getting cold.

"Okay, _Step Up, Serendipity _or…_Aristocats_," he mumbled. Gabriella let out a snort. "Hey, you guys don't have the best 'guy' choice in DVD's, and since you don't wanna watch horror or anything, I had to settle for the next best thing." Gabriella opened her eyes and regarded him.

"_Aristocats_? I never would've taken you for a Disney-cartoon type of guy," she laughed again. Troy rolled his eyes.

"Which one?" He asked her, sounding like he was in a huff.

"_Aristocats, _honey, what else?" Gabriella replied in a mocking tone. Troy rolled his eyes and walked over the DVD player. He put in the DVD and turned on the TV, while Gabriella put their plates on the other side of the couch, facing the TV. Then she got the utensils, glasses and cans of fizzy. Gabriella purposefully put her legs up over the sofa, so there was no where for Troy to sit. He groaned, as there was only one other seat, and it was a hard-backed one.

"Where can I sit?" He moaned. Gabriella laughed.

"Chair. Floor," she suggested. Troy gave her a sarcastic look, and Gabriella smiled back sweetly. Troy sat down on the carpeted floor, beside where she was sitting. The movie started, and the two ate their dinner. When they were finished, they put the plates on the table behind the couch and resumed their positions from before. It was about halfway through the movie, where the cats had met up with the two goose sisters. Gabriella was absently fiddling with Troy's hair, stroking her fingers through it. Troy could feel shivers going through his body when Gabriella touched him.

When the movie finally finished, and Troy turned off the movie, Troy turned around and faced Gabriella. She was now laying on the sofa, and she smiled softly at him. Troy reached out and gently brushed away a strand of hair. Since the night in the park when she had kissed him on the cheek, all he could think of was to kiss her again. Now seemed like the perfect chance, but something in Gabriella's eyes stopped him. She looked sad and happy at the same time. Troy shifted closer to the couch and putting his arm underneath her head and Gabriella shifted, closing her eyes, looking seemingly content. When she opened her eyes, however, her eyes were pain-filled and she looked as though she was crying.

"What's wrong?" He asked her softly.

"I watched this movie the last time I saw my dad," she murmured back.

_So, good? Bad? Please review!_


	7. Chapter 7

_I said this story will be about ten chapters, right, well, I gotta make it about 15 to 20. Sorry. _

_Hope you enjoy this chapter! I liked writing it!_

The next day seemed like every other day for everyone else, except for Troy Bolton. He didn't quite know how to be feeling as he got changed into his sweats and a hoodie to get in the car for the game. Mr Bolton hadn't been in when Troy had gotten home, and he had a fair idea where he had been. There had been a crash and a bang as Mr Bolton returned home at about three in the morning. He crashed around downstairs for a bit and Troy had decided that it would be safer for him to just stay up in his room and try go back to sleep, instead of going down to see how he was. He was past tipsy drunk, and had gone straight to the violent stage. Troy knew that Jeanette would be in the room next to his, shivering underneath her blankets, and trying to block her ears.

His heart went out to her.

She lived with her mother most days, now, and barely had to put up with anything, except for the occasional break-down from Ms Silverstone. When she was here, she still had to put up with their father getting drunk. It felt horrible for Troy to know that Jeanette came from her new, stable home, and back into her old, unsteady life. Then again, she must be used to it by now…

* * *

Troy reported to the team that his father had woken up feeling sick that morning, so the assistant coach had taken over. Chad told him to give his 'get-well-soon' to his father before they started the game, and that made Troy feel worse. He had a feeling the only reason that he played half as good as he usually did, was because Jeanette was in the crowd, and he didn't want to let her down. He would've played better if Gabriella was in the crowd, but they hadn't quite reached the part in a relationship yet. Heck, it was barely a friendship, yet! After he got changed, he met up with his mum and his sister, who were waiting outside. He gave his mother a hug and his sister slipped an arm around his waist and proudly smiled as several girls looked at him adoringly as they walked past. 

"I'm going swimming with Ella later, you wanna come over?" She asked as they walked out of the gym.

"Who's Ella?" Troy asked his twelve-year-old sister.

"She's the girl who baby-sits me. She's _way _nicer than the other baby-sitters," Jeanette said. "We're going to go swimming at our house while mum goes and has coffee with her mum, since they're friends." Troy thought for a moment, and then nodded. He looked at his sister as she walked off again, spotting a group of boys ahead. She tossed her hair slightly and Troy saw her respond to one of the calls that a guy she knew called to her. Sometimes he forgot that she was growing up as well. She wasn't his little sister anymore, she was almost a teenager, and she had definitely seen a lot more than a majority of adults had seen. But even with her past, she still had a child-like innocence in her eyes, which sometimes made Troy forget his sister really _was _growing up.

"So what's this 'Ella' like?" Troy asked as he walked alongside his mother. Ms Silverstone smiled idly.

"I haven't actually met her, to tell the truth, but her mother is lovely, and Jeanette adores her—it's the first baby-sitter she hasn't minded having," she replied. Troy slipped an arm around his mother's shoulders. Ms Silverstone gave him a tired smile and looked ahead at where Jeanette was talking with the boys. "You go drag her away, and I'll bring the car round." Troy nodded and made his way over the road to where Jeanette was. He noticed some of the guys who had been at a party that Jeanette had held, but the other guys were all people he didn't recognize.

"Jee, we gotta go," he said. Jeanette nodded and turned to walk with him. When they reached the end of the road, she turned and waggled her fingers in a wave. There were chorus's of 'See ya' and 'Bye' coming from the boys. Troy bit back his grin and rolled his eyes as Jeanette blushed slightly. "Mum's gonna bring the car around, and I'll come swimming with you after I pick something to swim in.

"Cool," Jeanette replied and skipped off as Ms Silverstone came around the corner with her Skyline. Troy hopped in the backseat and remained quiet on the way over his house. Silence fell as Ms Silverstone parked the car and Jeanette and Troy got out and walked up to the house. Sandra answered the door and let them in cheerfully.

"Something wrong with Mr Bolton," she said in her faulting English. "Sore head, no noise." She said, before turning and walking off. Troy shook his head and jogged upstairs. Jeanette had all of her things packed and by the front door, so she waited downstairs for Troy. Troy got another change of clothes and his swimming togs and then went and checked on his dad. Mr Bolton was fast asleep, Panadol and a glass of water on the bedside table. Troy shook his head disapprovingly and quickly tipped the water out and refilled it with more, making sure the water was clean and not filled with anything it shouldn't been. Even with a hangover, his father couldn't be trusted not to take alcohol, Troy knew that from experience. When he came back downstairs, said good-bye to Sandra, and walked outside with his sister, she looked up at him and asked,

"Is he okay?" Troy rolled his eyes and replied,

"Is he _ever _okay?" Jeanette sighed as they got back in the car. Ms Silverstone drove, knowing that the subdued silence from her children. She knew from her sixteen years of marriage with Mr Bolton, that he had an alcohol problem. It had started a few years after Troy had been born, so he still had memories of his father before the alcohol had taken affect on his life. But Jeanette didn't have that privilege. Ever since she was a baby, she only knew her father as the abusive, alcoholic man he was now.

* * *

Jeanette changed into her togs as soon as she got back to her house. Troy roamed around the house upstairs for a bit, looking at his mothers' new house, as he'd only been there a few times, and usually it was to pick Jeanette up and then leave straight away. He explored the upstairs rooms, and didn't hear the baby-sitter 'Ella' arrive. She was already in her bikini and so Jeanette thundered upstairs to get Troy. 

" Troy! Ella's here! Mum's just going out now, and she says you have to go and say 'bye'!" Jeanette panted as she sprinted back down the stairs again. Troy had changed already, and came down, a towel wrapped around his upper body. His mother kissed him quickly on cheek and then hurried out the door. "C'mon, Troy, Ella's in here." Jeanette tugged Troy outside to the swimming pool. There was a girl lying face-down on the concrete in a brown and black bikini, soaking in the sun. Something about her figure was oddly similar and as the girl looked up, Troy blinked in surprise.

"Gabriella?" He asked. She looked as equally stunned.

"Troy? Wh—what are you doing here?" She asked.

"Jeanette's my sister," Troy answered. Gabriella let out a slight laugh. Jeanette watched in confusion as the two teenagers slowly came to grips with the fact they were connected through the younger girl, before both laughing. "Well, I suppose in a way, I should've put it together when Jee was calling you 'Ella'." Gabriella thought for a moment and replied,

"Yeah. Something went off in the back of my head with Jeanette said you hadn't had a girlfriend, but lots of girls liked you, and then you told me that about yourself. And also how your mum works in an office and…yeah, I can't believe I didn't click!" Gabriella smiled again. Troy smiled back, and for a moment, Jeanette was pretty certain that they were no longer on planet earth. She cleared her throat pointedly and the teenagers both turned and gave her a blank look, as though wondering why she was standing there. "Oh, right, yeah…" As Gabriella looked at the younger girl and blushed slightly. Jeanette crossed her arms and asked,

"Do you guys go out?"

"No!" Troy cried.

"No, course not!" Gabriella protested.

"We're just friends!"

"Yeah."

"Whatever," Jeanette said, rolling her eyes. "You guys obviously have a 'thing'." Jeanette looked proud of herself. Troy stood and up and advanced on her.

"And you _obviously _are thinking about things you shouldn't be thinking about for a few more years!" He shouted as he picked her up and threw her in the pool. Jeanette came up, spluttering and indignant. Gabriella tried to hold back her laughter as Jeanette clambered out of the pool and sprinted at Troy. Troy started running in the opposite direction, but slipped on a towel, and fell into the pool. Jeanette stood on the edge of the pool, laughing at her brother, as Troy came up from under the water. He grabbed her ankles and pulled her into the water after him. Gabriella sat on the concrete, laughing as brother and sister tried to dunk each other.

She realized that she had been quite stupid and blind not to have realized earlier. Aside from the reasonably obvious things such as how their mothers worked together, and how Troy was busy on the days that Jeanette had to be baby-sat, they also looked amazingly alike. They both had the blonde-brownish hair and the same deep blue eyes. Although Troy was taller and had a more masculine figure, Jeanette still stood in the same way, with her head slightly tilted to one side, and she bit the left half of her lower lip when she was thinking hard, which was the same as Troy. Gabriella honestly couldn't believe that she hadn't realized all the similarities between them earlier, especially since she spent a reasonable amount of time with the both of them.

"Ella! You coming in?!" Jeanette yelled from the pool. Gabriella thought for a moment, before crawling to the pool and sitting on the edge, letting her feet dangle in the water. "C'mon, Ella, it's warm. It's been…" Jeanette thought back to the homework Gabriella had helped her on a few days earlier. "It's been solar-heated." Gabriella laughed and shook her head.

"Nah, I'll hop in later," Gabriella answered. Troy rolled his eyes and ducked under the water. Gabriella was looking off into the distance, seeming to have spaced out, and when Troy was underneath the water beneath her feet, she didn't realize. Troy grasped her feet and pulled her into the water, initiating a squeal from a surprised Gabriella as she sunk underneath the surface. As she came up, she turned and glared at Troy.

"How could you?!" She shouted at him.

"Quite easily, actually," Troy replied cheekily. He had a grin on his face and twinkle in his eye, and Gabriella couldn't stay mad at him. A grin broke out her face, even though she continued to glare at him. "You know you can't stay mad at me…" he teased. Gabriella lunged at him, and missed. He grasped her waist and dunked her under. Gabriella swung herself around so that she was sitting on his shoulders. Troy came up, holding her tanned thighs so she wouldn't fall off. "You are so light!" He teased her. Jeanette had moved over to the steps and was drying her hands. Gabriella's cell-phone lay on the concrete next to her towel, and Jeanette leaned over to get.

"Troy, put me down now!" Gabriella squealed as he spun around in the water and Gabriella's hair went everywhere. Jeanette grinned as she snapped a photo on Gabriella's phone. When it showed up, Jeanette saved it quickly and put it was the screensaver. She got out fully out of the water and sat on one of the seats by the water, knowing the other two had completely forgotten about her.

"What if I don't want to?" Troy teased her. Gabriella was holding tight to his shoulders as he spun around again.

"Please, Troy," she was begging now. "Put me down!" Troy laughed and gently leaned over so she tipped over backwards. When she resurfaced, she was glaring at him again. "You should've put me down when I first asked!" She told him, trying to sound angry and annoyed, but failing miserably as Troy took a step toward her, and she hesitantly stepped back. His eyes had darkened slightly as she finally was backed against the side of the pool and his arms came up on either side of her.

"You climbed on my shoulders first," Troy answered. Gabriella felt her stomach clench as his face came closer to hers. His arms moved in on her, and touched her wet arms. Gabriella felt amazingly exposed in only her bikini. "Why didn't you want me to put my arm around you?" Gabriella was confused.

"Huh?" She asked.

"Yesterday, at dinner," he replied. "You didn't want me to sit on the couch because I would put my arm around you." Gabriella blushed and averted her eyes. Troy looked at her intently until she finally had to meet his gaze. "Tell me."

"I…I dunno," she replied. "I just don't like it when guys put their arms around me, I guess."

"You didn't mind kissing me on the cheek," Troy told her. Gabriella's breathing seemed to stop, and Troy knew she was getting nervous.

"That was different," she whispered.

"So if I kiss you now, it'll be different," Troy whispered back, coming closer to her again. Gabriella's eyes were already partly closed, and he could hear her breathing hard.

"No, it wouldn't," she murmured.

"Yes, it would," Troy replied, even though he didn't know quite what they were talking about. But it didn't matter, because all he wanted to do right now, was kiss her. And that's what he did. His lips landed right on hers, and Gabriella leaned into him, pushing away from the wall. Troy let his arm go around her as he gently kissed her mouth. Gabriella pulled away after a moment, and told him,

"You shouldn't have done that."

"Why not?" Troy asked.

"I-I don't know..." she murmured. Her eyes were wide and frightened. Troy didn't quite understand the reason and he frowned slightly. "Just don't do it again—" Before she finished her sentence, Troy kissed her again, and she kissed back.

"Too late," Troy told her, smiling slightly. Gabriella had a slightly scared look in her eyes, but smiled back, hugging him tightly.

_Please review!_


	8. Chapter 8

_Well, I hope you all liked the last chapter!_

When Gabriella got home that night, she had a dreamy smile on her face. It didn't take much for her mother to sum up that Troy had been at Jeanette's house, and something had happened between the two of them. Mrs Montez had put up with the one-word answered and dreamy looks from her smile on her daughters face for the evening—she was just glad that her daughter was finally happy. Gabriella hadn't really, truly smiled in what seemed like for so long! She also hadn't trusted herself to be with another guy since a year or two ago, when her father had punched in a boys nose when he saw Gabriella holding hands with a boy.

Mrs Montez was glad for her daughter.

Mr Montez made his regular call, at half-past eight. As usual, Gabriella's face closed down when Mrs Montez said that he wanted to talk to her, and she refused. He had been patient until now, but now he sounded angry, even when he had just got on the phone.

"Sam, what is it?" Mrs Montez asked, hearing her husbands annoyed tone and feeling worried.

"Is she seeing someone?!" He thundered into the phone. Mrs Montez bit her lower lip; she wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. She didn't want to lie, because she knew that he would somehow find out, but she didn't want to tell the truth, because she knew how her husbands felt when Gabriella was with someone. "Are you going to answer me?!" He basically shouted in her ear.

"Uh, well, Gabriella is friends with this new boy at her school, but that's all," Mrs Montez quickly said. Gabriella was standing around the corner, listening to the conversation. She knew her father couldn't do anything. He could scare them, but he couldn't actually hurt them…could he?

* * *

When Gabriella got on the bus, people eyed her carefully. She wondered if they knew about her and Troy. Then again, it wasn't exactly unobvious, since he had sat next to her the last couple of times on the bus, and from the looks on the other people's faces, that wasn't something that usually happened. Her cell-phone had been switched off all night, and Taylor had promised to text her, so Gabriella turned on her cell-phone.

"What the heck?!" She cried as she saw the screensaver. It was of her and Troy kissing in the pool. Gabriella's eyes clouded in confusion. She didn't know who could have taken the photo since only her and Troy had been there…and Jeanette. Gabriella suppressed laughter as she realized that Jeanette must've taken over her phone. She went into the photo folder and it was filled with them in the pool. Gabriella on Troy's shoulders, and then of them kissing.

"Whatchya lookin' at?" Someone asked as the fell into the seat next o her. It was Taylor. Gabriella quickly snapped her phone shut and tried to put it in her pocket.

"Nothin'," she replied. Taylor laughed.

"Yep, sure," Taylor snatched the phone out of her hand and opened it. "Oh my goodness. You kissed Troy! You kissed Troy Bolton!" Gabriella slapped her hand over Taylor's mouth as several people in front of them turned around. Finally, Gabriella removed her hand and Taylor grinned widely. "Knew you had it for him. But him for you…wow…" Gabriella snatched her phone back and put it in her hoodie pocket.

"Yeah, well, what about you and Chad?" Gabriella asked. Taylor rolled her eyes and looked at Gabriella disbelievingly.

"Girl, what is it with you, me and Chad? There's nothing between us two—we hate each other!" Taylor told her. Gabriella didn't say anything. She just looked out the bus window with a smile on her lips. Taylor scowled at her for a moment before nudging her in the arm and asking, "Why has he told Troy something about me?" Gabriella just kept smiling, much to Taylor's annoyance. "Look, hunni, I want to know what people are saying about me—especially Chad!" Gabriella turned and looked at Taylor.

"Why 'especially Chad'?" Gabriella asked in a sing-song voice. "Do you _really _care about the way he talks about you?" Taylor narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms in a huff. "Oh, Tay's got a crush on a basketball boy…" Gabriella sung under her breath. Taylor frowned even harder before hissing,

"You really want me announcing to the whole bus you had a nice game of tonsil hockey with Bolton in the weekend?" Gabriella finally closed her mouth and shut up, but that didn't stop her smiling annoyingly and humming the same tune she was singing ' Tay's got a crush' under her breath. Taylor just shoved her iPod headphones into her ears and tried to ignore her.

When Troy hopped on the bus, most people glanced over to where Gabriella was sitting, next to Taylor. Troy gave Gabriella a slight smile, and then sat in the seat next to Chad, where he hadn't sat in a few days. Chad slapped hands with Troy and a cheerleader came over and purposefully sat on his knee, sending a deathly glare down to Gabriella, who rolled her eyes in answer.

* * *

During homeroom, whenever Gabriella looked up, she always found Troy's eyes on her. She blushed everytime, to her annoyance, and turned back to Taylor or Sharpay Evans. Chad noticed that Troy seemed distracted during homeroom as well, and when the bell when to signal First Period, he grabbed Troy's arm and pulled his away from the rest of the group.

"Dude, what's with you? You were so distracted—When Miss called your name, you didn't even notice until I whacked you!" Chad said. Troy shrugged and glanced over his shoulder, to where Gabriella was digging through her locker, unaware of the two of them. "And I know it's got something to do with the new chick with nice eyes…you been staring at her for ages, and you been sitting next to her on the bus! You never do that!"

"Look, I gotta go…I'm gonna be late for class," Troy mumbled as he saw Gabriella close her locker and blend into the crowd. He took off after her and Chad groaned.

"And there, you go and do it again!" He muttered angrily. Behind him, Taylor snorted. "What do you want, McKessie?" He muttered. Taylor smiled disarmingly and walked closer to him. "She's your mate, keep her away from him."

"Won't do that, boof-head, coz I don't care if they're together," she said as she walked past. Chad glared after her, before clicking at what she had actually said. He ran up to her, grabbed her arm, and pulled her into an empty classroom. Taylor glanced around the deserted room and locked door and then glared at him. "Do not even _think _of trying to make out with me at this moment."

"Don't worry, brainiac, that's one of the last things on my mind," Chad hissed back. "Look, Gabriella's your mate. She hot and all, but she's totally distracting Troy. He played well at the game, but he's been totally flunking out at practices." Taylor rolled her eyes sky-ward. She'd heard from somewhere that Troy's dad had drinking problems. She wasn't sure if it was true, but she was pretty confident.

"Look, Gabriella might be a slight distraction, but if he's not doing well at basketball, it might have something to do with more than a girl," she brushed past him to the door. "Look closer into the team for the distraction," she called over her shoulder.

Chad stared after her for a moment, taking in what she had said. The team, he thought. Him and his mates weren't acting any differently, it was only Troy. That left the coach, Coach Bolton, Troy's dad. But what would Troy's dad have to do with anything. Chad thought about for a minute longer, and then realized that he was going to be super late for class, and quickly bailed.

* * *

Gabriella had Science next, and she was glad that Sharpay was in her class. Sharpay was overly dramatic, and bit obsessed with herself and an all over Drama Queen, but there was something about her demeanor which Gabriella really liked. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but the energy which Sharpay always seemed to have, made Gabriella happy that she was around.

As Gabriella and Sharpay sat at the back of the class, measuring out liquids, Sharpay asked,

"What's with you and Bolton?" Gabriella paused for a moment, wondering whether Taylor had told her about the photos or not. But when Gabriella looked at Sharpay's face, there wasn't a knowing look on it or anything, just curiosity. "Like, do you know him from a club or something, coz he's _never _sat by a chick on the bus. Sometimes a chick goes and sits next to him, but he's _never _sat by another girl. Barely even sits next to his mates! They just talk over the seats or across the aisle." Gabriella shook her head and smiled.

"Nah, there's nothing going on," she replied, thinking back to the pool. "I guess he just can't resist being attracted to my natural charm!" She said and laughed. Sharpay rolled her eyes, but laughed along as well.

_It was sort of a fill in chapter, but oh well!_

_Please review!_


	9. Chapter 9

_Hey! Hope you like!_

After baby-sitting Jeanette for an hour, Gabriella walked home. Jeanette had kept giving Gabriella strange, knowing looks. Gabriella didn't know how to respond, so she just acted as if she had no idea what Jeanette was hinting at. Night was falling and the sun was setting in the distance as Gabriella made her way through the streets which were slowly beginning to feel familiar. As she reached her street, she looked over her shoulder and heard scuffling and muttering and what looked like a few people step behind a gate. Gabriella turned around again, and took a deep breath and walked faster toward her home. She spun around again as she got to her drive and looked up and down the street.

Whoever had been behind her, had gone. She felt her heart pounding in her chest and she let out a long sigh of relief and she pushed open the door into the living room. Mrs Montez was sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper, and as he daughter walked in, face pale and drawn, she stood up in concern.

"What's wrong, honey?" She asked, crossing the room and Gabriella hugged her tightly. "Gabriella? Are you okay?" Gabriella pulled away from her mum and nodded slowly. "You sure? What happened?"

"Some—" The doorbell rang and in fright, Gabriella let out a squeal. Mrs Montez looked at her daughter oddly and then walked into the foyer and opened the door. Gabriella went to the cupboard and opened it up, taking a glass out and filling it with water. Mrs Montez walked in, showing two boys, both looking flushed and sweaty as they walked in.

Chad and Troy.

Gabriella almost spat the water back into the glass as she saw the two come around the corner. Chad looked a bit embarrassed as he shuffled from foot-to-foot. Mrs Montez stepped into the awkward tension and tried to ease it.

"I must cook dinner, so if you guys want to go up to Gabriella's room," Mrs Montez worded it more as an order than a suggestion. Gabriella tipped her water down the sink and led the boys silently up to her room. She closed the door behind her and sat down comfortably on her bed, regarding the two with judging eyes.

"We, uh, wanted to return your book," Troy mumbled, handing her a book which was in his hand. Gabriella had no idea how he had gotten his hands on her book, but took it anyway, and gave him a slight smile. "We, uh, came straight from basketball practice, that's, uh, why we're…so sweaty." Troy looked nervous, and his eyes kept darting from side-to-side. Chad looked rather out of place as well. Gabriella decided to calm them down, by giving them what boys could never turn down.

Chocolate.

"Chocolate, guys?" Gabriella asked, reaching into her desk drawer and pulling out a block of Caramello chocolate. Chad zoomed in and snapped off a whole row. Troy broke off a few squares as well, and then sat down tentatively on the bed next to her. Chad pulled up a chair and sat on that. She looked at them both nervously. "Is there, like, a reason you guys are getting comfortable?" She asked. "Coz, I got homework at stuff." Chad nodded quickly but they still didn't say anything. Gabriella made her eyes big and shook her head. "Uh, guys?" Troy shook his head quickly, as though just snapping out of a trance.

"Huh?" Gabriella rolled her eyes and Chad sighed. "What?"

"Dude…" Chad nodded his head pointedly in Gabriella's direction. Gabriella raised her eyebrows.

"Right, uh, there's the party, right?" Troy started. "There was one last weekend and I didn't go, and so I promised Leanne I'd go to this party this weekend. And, uh, it'd be good if you came." Gabriella nodded, her expression giving away nothing. "So, uh, do you wanna come with me?"

"I don't know. I'll see," her voice was vague. Troy tried not completely blush. She sounded as though she just being polite, her voice and expression making her seem detached. She made it sound as though he had been rejected. "Did you guys, like, happen to be walking behind me?" She asked. Chad went red. "And duck behind some trees or a fence when I turned around." Chad went slightly redder. She fixed her eyes on him.

"Uh, yeah, that was us…" he muttered. Gabriella raised her eyebrows.

"Why?"

"Coz, um…I dunno," Chad muttered. Gabriella let out a short laugh.

"We, uh, better be going," Troy said standing up. Chad looked up at him with puppy dog eyes, his mouth full of chocolate. Gabriella had to giggle at his pathetic looking face. Troy just looked a bit embarrassed. "Chad! Now!" He hissed and grabbed his mates arm and pulled him to his feet. "Se ya, Gabo," he said as he tugged Chad out the door. Chad ducked his head back in and told her,

"You're all right, ya know?" The Troy yanked hard on his arm and Gabriella heard them thundering down eh stairs. Gabriella looked around for the rest of the chocolate and then raised her eyebrows as she saw the wrapping of the family sized chocolate slab lying on the ground. Chad had finished all the chocolate. Gabriella laughed ruefully and shook her head. A moment later, Mrs Montez came into the room, holding a plate of deep-fried chips. Gabriella smiled tiredly at her mother as she sat down on the edge of her bed. Mrs Montez sat next to her and offered her the plate. Gabriella took a chip off and ate it slowly. The silence drew out until Mrs Montez finally said,

"Troy seems nice." Gabriella nodded.

"Yeah, I guess," she replied. Mrs Montez bit her lower lip and glanced at her daughter, who was chewing on a chip slowly and staring aimlessly outside. Mrs Montez had seen that her daughter had been looking happier over the past few weeks than she had been in months, perhaps several years—ever since her father had started to drink. Mrs Montez was glad, and she had a feeling that Troy had also had something to do with that.

"I hope you're happy here," Mrs Montez said. Gabriella turned and smiled at her mother.

"Yeah, I am," she replied. Mrs Montez smiled in relief. She kissed Gabriella on the head and got up to leave the room. "Love you, mum," Gabriella called as her mother left the room. Mrs Montez smiled and turned around, replying,

"I love you too, sweetheart." Gabriella smiled and breathed deeply. She picked up her phone and clicked into her pictures album, looking over the pictures that Jeanette had taken of her and Troy for the hundredth time. Then she got up and went to her computer, plugging in the connection and then transferred the photos onto her computer. She clicked into email and sent a few of them to Troy. She grinned and shook her head. She had no idea why she done that, but she hoped that Troy would check his emails. Then she got into her boxers and a tank-top and hopped into bed.

* * *

Troy sat on his bed, staring at the wall. His dad was out—down at the pub with a couple of his work colleagues. He didn't really know what to do; since Sandra had already left and he had done all of his homework. He got up and walked over to his computer and turned it on. He hadn't checked his MSN or email for ages, and since he was connected to so many Internet sites, he guessed that his Inbox was going to be pretty full. First he went onto his MSN, and a couple of the cheerleaders he knew were online.

_Sup, b-ball boy! _

Came up onto the screen. It was from Mazie Chantree, the girl who had invited him to the party. Troy wondered whether he should reply, and then typed,

_I invited a mate to come to the party, you all good with that?_

A reply soon came,

_Course!! As long as you don't spend all the time with him!!_

Troy chewed on his lower lip.

_It's not a him. It's a her. She's in our form class—Gabriella Montez. _

On the other end, Mazie was taking a while to reply. It took her almost a whole three minutes to type to him,

_Oh, kay._

Troy guessed that she would be annoyed that Gabriella was coming. It didn't take a genius to figure out that her and the other cheerleaders weren't particularly fond of Gabriella, since he paid for attention to her than them. Mazie was actually pretty cool, but she was an actual cheerleader, and as much as it was un-cool to stereotype, she did act like a normal blonde cheerleader. She swooned over him and acted as if he was the funniest guy on the planet. Gabriella didn't do that. She acted as if she was equal to him, and at times, as though she was better than him, and Troy actually liked that.

He was about to send a reply, when a notice pinged up on his screen.

_LilBlondeSweetheart has signed off._

Troy shrugged and logged off as well. He logged into his email and clicked Send/Receive and his Inbox filled up quickly with almost 200 emails. The most recent one was sent about five minutes ago and from an unknown address. He looked at the address and smiled as he saw that it was from Gabriella, since it was the address that he had teased her about a week ago. He clicked onto it and it took a few seconds longer to load everything up. Then three pictures flashed up onto the screen. It was of Gabriella and him in the pool. One was of them splashing around together, one was of Gabriella on his shoulders and both of them laughing, and the other one was of them kissing. Troy smiled at the screen as he realized that it was Jeanette who must've taken the photos.

"Who are they of?" Came a low voice from the door. Troy spun around in his seat to see his dad in the doorway. He quickly clicked for the screen to minimize it, but his dad came over and took the mouse of him. He was swaying slightly as he stood and Troy could smell his stale breath. He was drunk, and it would only take something small to set him off. Something like the pictures. Mr Bolton looked over the pictures, still swaying unsteadily. Troy felt hot and cold all over as Mr Bolton viciously clicked out of the screen and turned to Troy. "That's that little girl I've seen you with at school. You playing around with her? Does she know what a jerk you are? Does she knew that you're the reason your mother left?!"

"It wasn't me that made mum leave!" Troy shouted back, getting out of his chair and backing away. Mr Bolton's face screwed up. "It was you! You and your—your _drinking _problem! It was all _your _fault! Not mine!" Troy was sick of it; sick of his father, sick of his drinking addiction, sick of getting blamed, sick of getting hit—sick of everything! "Stop blaming me! It's not my fault you go out and get wasted every night you can!" Troy shouted, getting angrier and angrier. He was seeing red, and could barely see his father. "I can't stop you drinking—you just go and kick me or punch me!" Suddenly, a fist met his jaw with a bone-jarring crunch. Troy gasped and fell to the ground.

"How dare you?!" Mr Bolton roared at his son, who was on the ground, holding his jaw. "How dare you talk to me like that?!" He kicked Troy in the stomach. Troy writhed, holding his stomach tightly, tears flooding his vision. His father always apologized the next morning. Blamed it on the alcohol. But it didn't undo what he done, and tonight he seemed even angrier. Troy let out a shout as Mr Bolton's foot connected with his thigh and then his shin. Mr Bolton was in a rage, he had had too much to drink, and Troy had really set him off this time.

He kept kicking, and lashing out with his fists. Troy wasn't moving by the time Mr Bolton stopped. Mr Bolton gave his son one last look before leaving the room and going downstairs. He got water from the fridge and sucked in back, wondering whether he should go back up to Troy. But the alcohol which was flooding through his body took over his better judgment, and walked into the lounge, snagging another beer from the fridge.

_Well, I hope you guys...sorta, enjoyed._

_Review please!_


	10. Chapter 10

_Hey people! Look, before I carry on, _'Secrets' _is going to be finished soon and I need a new story to carry on with. I will make both of these stories, but you get to decide which one I'll do first! Just read the trailers and tell me which one you want first! _

_

* * *

_

_Here's the first one!_

**_…He has a passion for basketball… _**

_… Troy shooting a basketball at a hoop… _

**_…She has a passion for dancing… _**

_…Gabriella landing from a jump and doing the splits… _

**_…Their worlds have always been separate… _**

_… Troy and Gabriella walking down the hallway, glancing past each other, not acknowledging each other… _

**_…Then the worlds are forced together… _**

_…"You will be sharing the gym for practices," Mr Matsui told Troy and Gabriella… _

**_…And they collide with a crash… _**

_…"Go twirl and spin somewhere else, can't you?!" Troy shouted. _

_"Go shoot your hoops somewhere else!" Gabriella yelled back… _

**_…And it's when everything counts... _**

_…"There will be scouts everywhere," Coach Bolton told his team… _

_…"Your dancing now determines what University you go to!" Mrs Peters told her group… _

**_…And everything is going wrong… _**

_…Gabriella jumping and landing with a crash… _

_…Troy shooting a hoop and missing… _

**_…They blame each other… _**

_…"Why can't you just leave me alone?!" Troy shouted. _

_"Because you're always in my face!" Gabriella screamed back… _

**_…And then Troy finds out a secret about Gabriella… _**

_…"You've got to be kidding me, right?" Troy asked the dancer with an unbelievingly look on his face. _

_"No, it's hers," the dancer answered with a smirk… _

**_…When he confronts her, things gets even worse… _**

_…"Who told you?" Gabriella asked with a tight expression. _

_"Are you telling me it's true?" Troy asked. _

_"What does it matter to you?" Gabriella hissed and slammed the door… _

**_…Will it bring them together… _**

_Troy__ and Gabriella hugging outside East High. _

**_…Or tear them apart… _**

_"I can't believe I trusted you!" Gabriella cried, tears streaming down her face. _

_"Gabriella, it wasn't me!!" Troy cried back. _

**_…Two Worlds Collide…Coming Soon… _**

_

* * *

_

_And here's the other one!_

**_…She has the perfect friends… _**

_…Gabriella walking down the hall, her arms linked with two other girls, all of them laughing and talking… _

**_...The perfect clothes and hair… _**

_…Gabriella going through her wardrobe and flicking through expensive looking clothes… _

**_…And the perfect boyfriend… _**

_…Gabriella standing next to a tall basketball player, wearing his jacket… _

**_…Everything's perfect… _**

_…Gabriella leaning against a tree, texting and smiling… _

**_…Or is it… _**

_…"Don't you ever talk to me like that!!" Mr Montez yelled and a slap ran through the room… _

**_…Her outwardly perfect life, is living hell… _**

_…"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Gabriella sobbed, crumbling to the floor and tucking her knees up to her chest… _

**_…And no-one even knows… _**

_…"How'd ya get the bruise, Gab?" Taylor asked, pointing at Gabriella's cheek. _

_"Slammed into the door-frame," Gabriella replied, shaking her head ruefully… _

**_…Until one day, things get out of hand… _**

_…Gabriella standing in black next to a woman who was also crying, as a coffin was lowered into the ground… _

**_…And her secret is all over the school… _**

_…"Does your dad, like…rape you?" A freshman asked with an unbelieving smirk on his face. _

_"Does your dad, like…overfeed you?" Sharpay replied sneerily, pointing at his oversized stomach and pulling Gabriella away… _

**_…And when she needs him most of all, Troy isn't there for her… _**

_…" Troy! Talk to me!" Gabriella called out to him as he turned away. _

_"I can't, alright?!" Troy snapped and walked away… _

**_…Will they pull through… _**

_… Troy and Gabriella leaning in to kiss… _

**_…Or will they break away… _**

_…"Troy, this isn't going to work," Gabriella whispered. _

_"Wait, you're breaking up with me?" Troy asked. _

_"Yes," Gabriella murmured… _

**_…Perfection Has It's Price…Coming Soon… _**

* * *

_So, review and tell me which one you want!_


	11. Chapter 11

_Hey, next chapter is up!! Due to the poll...The first story _Two Worlds Collide _will be my next story. Sorry to those who wanted the second one, but I promise that it will be up. Also, when it said in the trailer that Gabriella's father raped her, it was just a kid being sarcastic. It's absolutely disgusting the whole incest thing, so there will none of that in my story. Just clearing that up..._

_And the Krystel in the chapter...You know who you are sweetie!! That's a shout out to you!! Lol..._

The next day, Troy wasn't on the bus. Chad leaned over and tapped her on the arm as she walked past, and gave her a hug. Gabriella hugged him back, although felt a bit confused. Zeke and Jason also smiled at her and gave her hugs as she made her way down the aisle to her seat. The cheerleaders sent more death glares in her direction, but Gabriella just smiled sweetly back, already used to the looks she'd been getting from the cheerleaders. One of the girls, though, a dark-haired cheerleader, came over and stood beside her.

"Hey, my name's Krystel," she said and smiled. Gabriella smiled hesitantly back. "Um, Mazie has this party in the weekend, and I was wondering if you want to come." Gabriella realized it was the same one that Troy had invited her too the other day. "You don't have to, or anything, but you and Troy seem like good friends, and I think he's coming…" Krystel drifted off.

"No, um, thanks," Gabriella smiled at her. "Yeah, I think I might come," she said with another smile. "Thanks for the invitation." Krystel turned to go, but then looked back and said,

"Don't worry about the other girls; they're just totally head-over-heels for Troy," she said. Gabriella nodded and smiled again. Krystel turned and walked back to her friends. Gabriella sat in her seat alone until they reached school. Taylor hadn't been on the bus—she'd told Gabriella that she sometimes got a ride to school with her mum. Gabriella got out her cell-phone and checked for any texts from Troy, but there weren't any. She summed up that he must've got a ride to school with his dad today, since he had been perfectly fine last night. When she got off the bus, she found that the basketball team all sent grins in her direction. She smiled back hesitantly and then ducked into school quickly, hoping nothing else out of the ordinary would happen.

* * *

By lunch time, Gabriella had concluded that Troy wasn't coming to school. Chad and the team seemed pretty confused as well, since they were obviously expecting him to be there, and hadn't received any texts from him to say he was sick or anything. Chad came over to her while she was at her locker. 

"You got any texts from Troy?" He asked her. Gabriella shook her head. Chad frowned and checked his texts quickly. "I haven't got any either—and he always texts me when he's sick…Something's not right…" Gabriella licked her lips quickly and then grabbed Chad's collar. She dragged him down the hallway and past surprised jocks and jealous cheerleaders and to a door where Troy had taken her. She pulled him up the stairs and finally let him go. Chad straightened out his collar and raised his eyebrows.

"Well, that was…a drag," Chad muttered. Gabriella rolled her eyes and pulled out her cell-phone. She speed-dialed Troy's cell-phone. It rang once and then was cut off by an electronic voice, saying something that surprised Gabriella. "What?" Chad asked. Gabriella took the phone away from her ear and looked at it in surprise.

"It…It says that its no longer in service," Gabriella frowned. Chad frowned as well. Gabriella dialed his home number. Sandra answered on the third ring. "Sandra? It's Gabriella."

¿"Gabriella¡Gabriella¡Troy... Troy, él...He está lastimado¡Él es malo lastimado! No sé qué hacer!!" Sandra said frantically into the phone. Gabriella frowned worriedly and Chad gave her a questioning look. ¡"Gabriella! Me preocupo!" Gabriella nodded.

"Okay, Sandra?" Gabriella said quickly into the phone. ¡"Calma abajo¡Calma abajo¡Estoy viniendo encima!" Chad looked at her in shock. Gabriella snapped her phone shut and started down the stiars, but Chad caught her arm.

"What language was that?" He asked her.

"Spanish!" She called as she ran down the stairs.

* * *

She arrived at the Bolton residence, panting, and she doubled over to catch her breath at the end of the driveway. Sandra flew out of the house and grabbed her, pulling her inside. The older girl looked confused and upset and frustrated and starting gabbling. Gabriella shook her head and licked her lips. Sandra took a deep breath and started talking slower. 

"Mr Bolton said Troy sick. So I go up and try help," Sandra started in her faulting English. " Troy—purple!" Sandra said. "I not know what to do." Gabriella had heard the rumours but wasn't sure if they were true or not. Now they sounded even truer than before. "Can you…up and see Troy?" Gabriella nodded and dropped her bag on a chair. She pulled off her black hoodie as she made her way up to Troy's room. She knocked hesitantly on the door. There was no answer. Gabriella pushed open the door and stepped in. Troy's eyes flew open and he looked at her in surprise.

"Gabriella! What are you doing here?!" He asked. She crossed the room and sat on the bed next to him.

"Sandra was worried, she wanted me to come," Gabriella replied. Troy shook his head.

"No, you should be at school!" He said.

" Troy, I'm not dumb, I know what's going on," Gabriella said quietly. Troy's eyes flashed and he looked away. He sat up and Gabriella quickly adverted her eyes from him. His torso was tanned and well-toned, but it was covered in several large, nasty bruises. Troy got out of bed and walked over to the windows on the other side of the room. He still had his pants on from last night, so Gabriella guessed that the argument happened last night. She got up and walked over to him, laying her hand on his arm. He flinched and she bit her lip nervously. "What was the fight over?" She asked gently.

"Nothing," Troy mumbled. Gabriella.

"I'd understand," she said quietly. Troy spun around to look at her. His eyes were shiny with tears and they flashed with hurt and anger.

"No you wouldn't!" He shouted. "That's what they all say—my cousins, my aunts, my uncles—they all say that! But they all have perfect families and they have no idea!" He shouted and Gabriella took a step back. He stopped and his shoulders were heaving. Gabriella licked her lips quickly and Troy saw the hurt on her face. But she stepped forward anyway and pulled her top down slightly, and Troy caught a flash of her camisole underneath. But what drew his attention where the two long scars which dipped down her chest. "H-how did you get those?" Gabriella bit her lip nervously, but answered,

"My dad…he attacked me with a kitchen knife," she murmured. Troy's eyes widened. "And this," Gabriella swept her hair away from her neck and when he looked closely he saw another scar—much smaller than the first two—just below her ear. Troy licked his lips nervously. "That time you saw me in the mall…it was after the court hearing…my dad was sent to prison for ten years for domestic violence." Troy licked his lips again, looking guilty. "Hey! Don't look like that!" Gabriella said as she dropped her hair. "You didn't know!" Troy sat down on the edge of his bed and dropped his head into his hands. Gabriella sat next to him. He looked up at her, and she saw that the tears were back. "Hey…it's okay…" she told him.

"Not, it isn't," he replied. A tear slipped down his cheek. Gabriella knew how he was feeling. Helpless……alone……terrified. "Everything's _not _okay!" Gabriella sighed and put her hand on his thigh.

"Yeah," she whispered. "Yeah, I know."

* * *

That night, Gabriella got a text from Chad. She frowned at how he managed to get her number, but then rang his cell. 

" Chad?" She said.

"Hey, Bella," Chad said into the phone quietly. Gabriella frowned. He sounded quiet and upset—two things Chad wasn't known for.

" Chad? You all good?" She asked.

"I got kicked off the basketball team," Chad said dully.

"What?!" Gabriella cried into the phone. There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end of the phone.

"Coach Bolton kicked me off the team," Chad replied.

"Why? What happened?" She asked worriedly.

"I went up to Coach…asked him where Troy was…" Chad began slowly. "I mean, I've heard what people say…never knew if they were true or not…So, I, like, asked Coach if he was sick…he said he was…the flu or something…I asked if I could go over to see him, Coach said no…he looked annoyed and angry…I—I kinda asked if the rumours were true…he just…kicked me off the team." Gabriella frowned and shook her head. "Did you see him?" Chad asked and Gabriella sighed. "Did he have the flu?"

"He looks real bad, _real bad_," Gabriella said quietly. "It was his dad." Chad let out a low whistle over the other end of the phone. Silence fell. " Chad? What are we going to do?"

"I—I don't know," he said quietly. There was another silence. Finally, Gabriella said,

"I'll see you tomorrow, aye?"

"Yeah, see ya," Chad said and they both hung up. Gabriella sighed and flopped back on her bed. She felt strange and quiet upset. She'd thought she'd escaped from all of this. Away from the violence and the sadness which tore her up inside. But instead, she had found more of it. That must've been the reason that Troy's parents had split up. It hurt her that someone was suffering the way she had, and she couldn't do anything about it. Sure, she couldn't do anything when it had been her, but now it was all over, and she was safe. She didn't notice her mother come to the door and look at Gabriella lying on the bed. There was a strange expression on her daughters face…one that she couldn't read. It was the same closed expression that she often wore after she had been in an argument with her father, but it had gone away over the past few weeks. Now it was back, and it worried Mrs Montez.

* * *

Troy wasn't on the bus the next day, but it hardly surprised Gabriella. She glanced around quickly and then realized that Chad was waving in her direction. He pointed at the empty seat that Jason and Zeke had quickly evacuated. She walked over slowly and sat it. Jason and Zeke pushed some of their mates aside and took their seats. Chad gave Gabriella a small smile and Jason put out his hand. 

"I'm Jase," he said. Gabriella smiled, slightly confused, shaking his hand.

"Uh, Gabriella," she replied. Zeke put out his hand.

"Zeke," he told her.

"Um, yeah…you guys are in my homeroom, aye?" She said.

"Yup," Zeke replied. "We're mates of Troy. Chad told us about what Coach did—to Troy and to Chad!" He lowered his voice, and Jason and Chad leaned in closer. "We're not allowed to visit Troy. Sandra will tell Coach, she doesn't like us. She thinks we're loud and noisy. But she likes you and she won't tell Coach. She…um, you…Uh, speak, Spanish?" Gabriella nodded. "And she thinks it might be the Coach. So we'll cover for you during free period and lunch if anyone asks for you, if you go and see Troy." Jason nodded.

"Yeah, we're really worried about him," Chad added. Gabriella opened her mouth to answer when another voice cut in.

"Gabi? _Why _are you sitting by the jocks?!" Taylor's voice rang out. Sharpay Evans was peeking over her shoulder. Gabriella patted the seat next to her and Taylor slowly sat downs, Sharpay sitting on the arm-rest. Zeke gave Sharpay a smile and she flipped her hair, going slightly pink. Taylor noticed this and rolled her eyes, but flushed slightly when Chad raised his eyebrows as a greeting to her. Gabriella turned back to the boys and said,

"I'll go. I'll do it."

* * *

After third period, Gabriella had free period and then it was lunch, so she quickly bailed. She managed to get out the school without being seen and made her way over to Troy's. Sandra opened the door and held out her hands, looking flustered and confused. 

"Sandra? What's wrong?" Gabriella asked.

¡" Troy ido!! Él no está aquí -- él no era aquí esta mañana tampoco!!" Sandra cried. Gabriella's eyes widened in shock.

"What do you mean—he's gone?!" Gabriella asked. Sandra took a deep breath before replying.

" Troy…not here! He gone!" Sandra cried. "I…Él ha ido. Vine esta mañana y él no estaba allí. Llamé a Sr. Bolton y él dijo que él había ido a sus madres. ¡Pero él no era, porque su madre llamó para dirigirse a él¡¡No sé dónde él es!! " Gabriella pushed past Sandra and sprinted up the stairs. She burst into Troy's room and sure enough, it was empty. She looked around and then walked over to his lap-top. She flipped up the toptop and saw the computer was on. The email screen was up and Gabriella saw he had started an email. She sat down and started to read it.

_Gabriella,  
Hey. If you're reading this, I've gone. I can't stand being around my dad any longer, and I don't want to burden my mum, so I've gone. Don't worry, I'll be fine. I've got enough cash to get me out of Albuquerque. Tell Chad and my mates and my mum and Janette that I'll be fine.  
And Gabriella? I love you. _

Gabriella bit her lip hard, willing herself not to let the tears come to her eyes. She flipped the laptop shut and just sat there for a while, staring out the windows, tears clouding her vision. She'd run away plenty of times, but she'd never left a note. She never had anyone she really cared about to leave behind, except for her mum. And what the end of the email said…Gabriella felt even more tears spring to her eyes as she stood up. She ran downstairs and past Sandra. She knew where the place was, and she was determined to get there before he had the chance to get away. Gabriella ran, her skirt tight around her knees and her hair streaming out behind her, odd pieces flying in her face.

Finally she arrived there.

_So, tell me what you thought!!_


	12. Chapter 12

_Here's the next chapter! Thank you to all my reiviwers and this story is coming to an end! Yes, an end! Well…like, in about four or so chapters, anyway. Check out my other stories also, if you've got time on your hands!! Here's the chapter: _

Gabriella ran into the train station and looked around wildly. Sure enough, there he was. Gabriella took a deep breath, quickly tamed her hair, and began walking over to where a sandy-haired boy was sitting on a bench, his head cradled in his hands. Gabriella sat down next to him and he looked in astonishment.

"Where is your train headed?" She asked him casually. Troy blinked at her in confusion, and then quickly looked down at his ticket and back at her.

"North," he replied. "Wh…What…How did you know I was here?"

"Well, I was guessing it wasn't a suicide note, it wasn't depressing enough," Gabriella answered breezily, not looking at him, her eyes focused on the train which was entering. "And…You aren't the first person to run away from home, just remember that. The train station isn't exactly an original idea," there was a hint of scorn in Gabriella's voice. "It was either here or the bus depot."

"Why aren't you at school?" Troy asked.

" Chad and the team were worried about you," Gabriella said. "They were gonna cover for me to leave school and find out if you were okay." She finally looked at him. "This will be the worst idea of your life, if you hop on that train," she told him seriously.

"Oh, right!" Troy laughed dryly. "Escaping from a guy who gets drunk and abuses me will be the worst idea of my life!"

"No, running from your problems will be, when you should stay and face them," Gabriella answered. Troy sighed. " Troy, listen to me. If you leave on that train, you'll be leaving behind not only your dad, but your mum and your sister and all your friends…and me," Gabriella told him quietly. Troy looked at her for a moment, and then back at the train tracks. " Troy, believe me, it's much safer to stay here."

"But…I…" Troy trailed off and shrugged.

"Troy…You can come back to my house…My mum will help you," Gabriella told him. Finally, he nodded. She took his hand and pulled him up. Gently, she pried the ticket out of his hand and crumpled it, throwing into a rubbish bin nearby. Then, she led him out of the train station.

* * *

Chad was pacing up and down the gym nervously. Jason and Zeke eyed him for a moment before resuming tossing the basketball back and forth between them. It was five to two, five minutes before the bell rang for the fifth period and Gabriella still wasn't back. 

"Something bad must have happened!" He finally cried, dropping onto a bench.

"Uh, dude?" Jason said. "Chill. Gabriella _can _look after herself."

"Yeah, stop stressing, just text her or some—"

"Danforth!" Taylor yelled, storming into the gym. Chad jumped up from the bench and looked at her. "Where is Gabriella?! She said she had some favor she had to do for you and she would be back by quarter to! It's _five _to!" Chad shrugged helplessly.

"I don't know where she is!" Chad cried.

"Don't know—Don't know where she is?!" Taylor yelled. Chad took a step back. "What does that mean?!"

"It means…I don't know where she is?" Chad tried.

"You mean you sent Gabriella on some hair-brained scheme and you don't even—"

" Taylor!" Sharpay yelled, running in. "Leave Chad alone!" Chad sent Sharpay a relieved look. "We'll kill him _after _we find Gabriella." Chad looked pained again. "Where is he Danforth?!" Sharpay screamed at him.

"Whoa, slow down, Blondie!" Chad yelled.

"Call me blonde again and I will inflict a great deal of pain upon you!" Sharpay hissed. Jason and Zeke laughed. "Just tell us where Gabriella is!" Chad looked from Taylor to Sharpay and then started talking. He told them everything about Troy, how they found out about his dad abusing him, how Chad had been kicked off of the team.

"So, you don't know where Gabriella is?" Taylor sighed, making it sound more like a statement than a question.

"Nah, she's standing right in front of me," Chad answered snappily. Ryan looked confused.

"I…I don't see her…And didn't you just say that you didn't know where she was?" Ryan said, tilting his head to one side. Sharpay reached over and slapped the back of his head. "Ow…" Ryan muttered, rubbing the back of his head. Sharpay rolled her eyes and turned back to the boys.

"Why don't you text her, Taylor?" Kelsi piped up from behind her.

"Yeah," Taylor muttered. She got out her cell-phone and texted Gabriella, her fingers slamming down on the keys, her eyes still looking furiously at Chad. Chad shrugged uncomfortably and looked away.

_Where r u?_

A moment later, a text message returned.

_Hme wit Troy. _

Taylor sighed.

"She's at her house…with Troy," Taylor told everyone. Chad nodded, although still not making eye contact with her. "I've never been to her house, does anyone know where it is?" Chad hesitantly put up his hand, as if he was being told off in a classroom. "Why do _you _know where it is?" Taylor asked rudely. Then she sighed, "Actually, don't answer that, I'm not sure I want to know." Chad picked up on what she was hinting with and opened his mouth to protest. But Taylor just glared at him. "Okay, I'm going to Gabi's house and _you're _taking me!"

"But…But…"

"No 'buts'. Troy's your friend, and Gabriella's mine! You should be worried about him!" Taylor snapped. hat seemed to change Chad's expression, and he quickly nodded.

"Yep, I'll come with you to Bella's," he said and nodded at the guys. "Let's go." They both got off their seats and walked over, Jason holding the basketball underneath his arm. "Right, are you all coming?" He nodded at Sharpay, Kelsi and Ryan. Sharpay narrowed her eyes at him.

"I wouldn't trust you alone with Taylor for longer than a second," she muttered and Chad glared at her. "So, yes, I'm coming. And these guys are too." Kelsi opened her mouth to protest, but Sharpay silenced her with a look. Ryan just shrugged, all too accustomed to being pushed around by his sister.

"Okay, let's go!" Taylor said, leading the way out of the gym. She stopped suddenly and turned to Chad. "Bella?" She asked in confusion. Chad grinned goofily.

"She has chocolate," he replied before walking off.

* * *

Troy was sitting on Gabriella's bed, just staring into space…Well, actually, it was Gabriella's blue walls, but he had completely zoned out. Gabriella was sitting beside him, just holding his hand. Her cell-phone buzzed and she read the message she had just got from Taylor. A moment later, one also arrived from Chad. Gabriella nudged Troy gently, knocking him out of his day-dream. 

"Hey, Troy? The gang's coming over…" Gabriella consulted her cell-phone. "_All _of them." Troy nodded, as though still not comprehending what she had said. " Troy, they really care about you—especially Chad. He was really worried about you. If I told him about the note you left, he would've gone nuts." Troy nodded, a slight smile on his face.

"Yeah," Troy murmured. " Chad's always been around. He's been my mate since Pre-K…Always around…" Troy shook his head. "I used to tell him everything—even that _I _was the one who had broken his iPod…But I didn't tell him this…" Troy sighed and dropped his head to his hands. "He's gonna go crazy," Troy muttered. Gabriella shook her head quickly, her hand resting lightly on his thigh.

"No!" She said firmly. "He'll understand…He will!" Troy looked up at her, his eyes boring into hers.

"You think so?"

"I know so!" Gabriella said, and then realized how corny that sounded. "Well, yeah, I'm sure he will," she quickly amended and Troy let out a dry laugh. Gabriella licked her lower lip. Her voice dropped to a whisper as she began her sentence. " Troy…" She began. Troy looked at her seriously. "I l—"

" Troy!" Chad yelled, running in through the door. Gabriella and Troy sprung apart, although Chad didn't seem to notice. "Hey, Troy! We were like so worried about you dude!"

"Thanks, man," Troy said with a grin as he got up. Something about Chad made everything else feel okay, even if only for a moment. Jason and Zeke ran in and they gave Troy a whack on the back. Troy winced and the guys looked at him with concern in there eyes.

"You okay, dude?" Zeke asked.

"Yeah," Troy said tightly. "Yeah…" Chad licked his lips nervously. Then Taylor and Sharpay stalked in.

"Hey, Troy!" Taylor said lightly and then walked over to Gabriella, Sharpay just giving Troy a quick smile. Ryan looked torn, not knowing whether to go over to his sister or go over to Troy. He settled for sitting at Gabriella's desk, Kelsi leaning on the desk next to them. Taylor and Sharpay started talking a mile-a-minute with Gabriella, who looked a bit tired, and Troy's three team-mates were all talking to him.

* * *

The gang all left about an hour later, just as Mrs Montez was pulling up the drive. Mrs Montez gave the retreating group a questioning glance and then walked into her house. 

"Gabriella! Gabriella Montez!" She yelled up the stairs from the kitchen. Gabriella came down the stairs. "Who were all those people?" Gabriella licked her lower lip and shrugged. Mrs Montez sighed. Gabriella had always been quiet and subdued when her father was around, always keeping herself to herself and not opening up. But over the past couple of weeks, Mrs Montez had noticed a change in that, and she liked it. She didn't want Gabriella going back to be the way she used to be. "Gabriella, sweetie, you know you can tell me…" Gabriella nodded.

"Mama, Troy's dad hits him," Gabriella murmured. Mrs Montez's face went pale.

"I know, sweetie, his mum told me," Mrs Montez said quietly. Gabriella bit her lip.

"He needs our help—_your _help!" Gabriella said urgently.

"Yes, yes, where is he?" Mrs Montez asked. As if on cue, Troy appeared at the top of the stairs. Mrs Montez nodded at him and indicated he should come down. He came down and Mrs Montez gave him a hug. Troy awkwardly hugged back, and Gabriella licked her lips nervously. "Okay, Troy, I'll ring your mum." She nodded determinedly. "We'll get through this, okay? Gabriella, take him up to your room while I ring her up." Gabriella nodded and Mrs Montez walked briskly out of the room. Gabriella gave Troy a quick smile.

"C'mon, Wild-Cat, I've been given strict instructions to take you to my room," she told him, grabbing his hand. Troy laughed lightly.

_So, please review and tell me what you think! _


	13. Chapter 13

_I'm at school again, which means...Don't expect too many updates!! But I've only got about three or four chapters left, so bare with me!!_

Ms Silverstone was around at the house with Jeanette in the tow about an hour later. The two women hugged and then Troy came down the stairs. They hugged and Troy started crying. Gabriella and Mrs Montez dwindled by the door, not sure whether to get involved or not. When Troy pulled away, his face was red and tear-stained. Ms Silverstone gave him a final rub on the back and then turned to Gabriella.

"Thank you so much, sweetie," she said with a sad smile. Gabriella nodded awkwardly and backed out of the room. Jeanette looked at her crying brother and her tearing-up mother and quickly bolted after her. Mrs Montez walked into the room and hugged Troy and then Mrs Silverstone. " Troy, honey, go and talk to Gabriella and Jeanette," Ms Silverstone sniffed. "We need to sort out what to do about your father." Troy nodded and took a deep breath, walking out of the room to find Gabriella. It wasn't too difficult, since Troy heard Jeanette talking. They were in Gabriella's room, sitting on the ground with their legs out on her balcony. Troy paused by the door as he heard Jeanette talking.

"I love him and he says he loves us…but—but he keeps drinking!" Jeanette wailed. Troy looked in quietly and saw Jeanette was crying, and Gabriella's arms around her. "And—and then we left…but we left Troy behind!! And now Troy— Troy gets hit! I hate it!" Jeanette sobbed. Gabriella made soothing noises and rocked Jeanette back and forth. "I hate him! I hate him!" Jeanette hiccupped. Gabriella pulled away from Jeanette and forced Jeanette to look at her.

"You do not hate him," Gabriella said firmly. "You may hate what he does when he is drinking, but you do not hate him. He is your father, and it doesn't matter what you say or what he does, he will always be your father, and you will always love him deep down…" Gabriella trailed off. Troy stepped out from around the door frame and walked over, sitting down in front of them. Jeanette sniffed and crawled between Troy's legs, wrapping her arms around his waist. Troy hugged his little sister back, burying his head in her hair and tears running down his face as well. Gabriella sighed and shook her head, pushing her hair back from her face. "You guys want anything? A drink? Something to eat?" Jeanette turned around slowly and gave Gabriella a wan smile and sniffed again.

"A tissue?" She asked. Gabriella smiled and stood up.

"Sure."

* * *

After leaving Troy and Gabriella, the group had all gone to a pizza parlor downtown. It had been about an hour an half since they had gotten there, and they were on their tenth pizza and third round of drinks. Taylor had texted Kelsi and she had turned up, flushed and worried, looking slightly guilty and yet proud of herself for skipping school. She had slipped in beside Jason and helped him to finish of his coke, listening to everyone around her talk about Troy and Gabriella. 

"I told you that it wasn't Gabriella who was distracting him," Taylor told Chad. Chad shrugged and went back to sipping his drink.

"So what? I didn't know the rumors were true…they were just rumors," Chad stated. Taylor shrugged as well and picked up another slice of piece. " Taylor, that's the last slice of pizza." Taylor shrugged and took a bite out of it. "And I like that pizza." Taylor took another bite, a much bigger bite, out of it. "Seriously, you wouldn't eat it all…" Chad said in a whiny voice. Sharpay rolled her eyes. Taylor was going to tease Chad, and then give it to him. Taylor might not know it yet and Chad didn't know it yet, but everyone else at the table knew it. " Taylor…" Chad whined. Taylor laughed and handed him the other half of the pizza.

"How unpredictable," Sharpay muttered sarcastically. The others at the table, minus Taylor and Chad, laughed. Even Ryan got the joke. Chad looked up from his pizza in surprise and Taylor just rolled her eyes. "Anyway, we were worrying about Troy, not your guys failing love-life." Chad's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to protest. "Don't even start, Danforth, I'm getting sick of your guys stupid games!" Sharpay snapped. "You say anything and I will seriously hurt you." Chad quickly snapped his mouth closed and Zeke and Jason burst out laughing.

"That was sweet!" Zeke gasped.

"You've been snapped twice today, Chad! By a Blonde!" Jason said, his shoulders shaking from laughing. Chad sent a glare in their direction and quickly wolfed down the rest of his pizza.

"Now, back to business," Taylor announced, glaring at Sharpay, who just shrugged and sipped on her drink. "I don't think we should do anything at the moment—"

"_That's _your big plan?" Chad sniggered.

"_Because_," Taylor continued, glaring at Chad. "Gabriella and Troy's mum seem to have in under control. We should just be there to support Troy." Chad's face went from amused to serious in downright seconds and he quickly nodded. "He will want support from his parents—mum—but it will mean a lot to him if we support him as well—especially you guys, coz you've been friends with him forever."

"Yeah, I've known him since pre-K," Chad mumbled. "And Coach. I can't…I can't believe he actually done that to Troy." Chad shook his head, a wounded look on his face. "Although, I guess I shoulda known… Troy never told me the reason his mum and sister left…"

"Okay, guys," Kelsi stood up. "I need to get home. The bus leaves in five minutes…" Kelsi got her bag and hugged Sharpay and Taylor. Jason stood up.

"I'll take you," he said. "You'll never make it to the train station in five minutes." Kelsi smiled. "See you, guys!" Jason called over his shoulder as they left the pizza parlor.

* * *

It was dark, and Mrs Montez and Ms Silverstone still hadn't come out of the lounge. Troy and Gabriella had ordered dinner and it had arrived. Jeanette had had a shower and borrowed some of Gabriella's clothes. Gabriella let Jeanette sleep in her bed, since it was getting on ten o'clock, and she and Troy went and sat in the kitchen. 

"What do you think will happen?" Gabriella asked as she dried the last of the dishes and put them away. Troy swallowed hard and shrugged. "You worried?" Troy let out a short, dry laugh.

"That would be the understatement of the century," he muttered as he hopped up on a barstool. Gabriella paused on the other side of the bar and smiled slightly.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine," she told him. Troy clasped his hands together on top of the bar and looked down. " Troy…Your dad does care about you…" Troy snorted, and Gabriella sighed. "It may seem difficult to get, but he does. Like I was telling Jeanette, it's just the way he acts when he drinks—"

"Then why doesn't he stop?!" Troy yelled. Gabriella looked taken aback, and stayed quiet for a moment.

"It's an addiction," she murmured. "It's like with drugs. You can't just stop taking drugs, you have to slowly stop, with a lot of help. And he will stop!" She told him determinedly. Troy half-smiled.

"You know, I've never met a girl like you before," he murmured. Gabriella smiled back.

"And believe me, you never will, Wild-Cat," she replied.

_Please review!!_


	14. Chapter 14

_Here's the update!_

When Ms Silverstone and Mrs Montez came out of the lounge, it was heading on eleven o'clock. Troy and Gabriella were still in the kitchen, talking. Ms Silverstone stopped just outside the door and smiled in at her son and Gabriella. Mrs Montez smiled as well, glad that both Troy and Gabriella had found someone…found each other. All four were getting tired, and so when Ms Silverstone and Mrs Montez walked into the room, the two teenagers looked at them, almost in relief.

"Okay, we've figured out what to do," Mrs Montez announced. "But it's getting too late to do anything at the moment." She looked at the clock and sighed. "You won't have to go to school tomorrow…" she muttered. "We'll talk about it tomorrow, okay?" The two nodded. Ms Silverstone looked around.

"Where's Jeanette?" She asked.

"Upstairs, in my bed," Gabriella said.

"I'll go get her," Troy offered. Ms Silverstone nodded. Her and Mrs Montez turned to each other and hugged, and then started walking toward the door. Troy walked quietly up the stairs to Gabriella's dark room and carefully picked Jeanette up. Gabriella smiled tiredly at the both of them. She opened the doors for them and when they reached the front door, leaned over and gave him a quick, awkward hug. As she pulled away, Troy murmured in her ear, "I'll be back later." Gabriella pulled back and gave him a confused frown.

"What?" She mouthed. Troy just smiled back and walked down the driveway to where his mum's car was. Mrs Montez smiled at Gabriella and put an arm around her shoulders.

"He's a sweet boy," Mrs Montez said approvingly.

"Thanks, mama," Gabriella said sarcastically.

"Now, sweetie, you get off to bed!" Mrs Montez gave Gabriella a nudge. Gabriella nodded and slowly trudged up the stairs to her bedroom. Gabriella took off her hoodie and skirt and pulled on her pyjama singlet. She climbed into bed in her singlet and boxers when there was a tap on her verandah door. Gabriella frowned and walked over, pulling open the curtains and shaking her head as she saw Troy on the other side.

"What are doing here?" She asked him with a smile.

"Mum said I could stay…Only, your mum doesn't know," Troy said with an awkward smile. Gabriella grinned and then shivered as the wind blew in and cooled her bare legs. She moved aside and Troy walked in. "You don't mind, do you?" He asked her. Gabriella gave him a small smile.

"No," she murmured. "Just keep it down."

"Can do," Troy murmured, pulling off his jacket and kicking off his shoes. Gabriella bit her lower lip and regarded him with chocolate eyes. He then pushed off his jeans and top, so he was only in his boxers. "You sure you don't mind?" He asked again, seeing her tense expression. Gabriella shook her head again, still looking slightly unsure. She slid under the covers of her bed and Troy slid in next to her. He reached out and flicked out her lamp, leaving them in utter silence and darkness. "Gabriella…" he began.

"Yeah," she murmured from next to him. Her body was rigid and tight, as though she couldn't quite believe what was happening.

"You need to loosen up," he told her gently. "I'm not gonna do anything." Gabriella let out the breath that she didn't know she had been holding. Troy smiled in the darkness, rolling over, so that his arm was brushing against her side. Gabriella sucked in another deep breath.

"You just said you're not gonna do anything," she murmured.

"I did, but that won't stop me trying, will it?" He replied in a cheeky voice. Gabriella let out a short laugh and whacked him lightly on the arm, narrowly missing a bruise. He bit his lower lip in pain.

"Oops, sorry," she murmured.

"It's all right," he replied in a tight voice. Gabriella moved closer to him, sinking down in the mattress next to him. His arm went across her stomach and pulled her tighter in next to him. "I'm worried about tomorrow," Troy whispered to Gabriella. Gabriella nodded, her head on Troy's chest. "You?" He asked, resting his chin on her head.

"Yeah, even though it doesn't concern me," Gabriella murmured back. Troy laughed shortly.

"You're too caring for your own good, you know that?" He told her. Gabriella sighed, her arm getting tighter around his waist. Silence fell and finally, Troy heard her gentle breathing, and he smiled, Gabriella asleep in his arms. "I love you," he murmured.

* * *

The next morning, Gabriella slid out of the bed, smiling down at Troy. She dressed quietly and quickly and then made her way downstairs. She tip-toed into the kitchen and quietly made two milos. When she turned around, Mrs Montez regarded her with a wry smile. Gabriella bit her lip nervously. 

"Two milos?" Mrs Montez raised an eyebrow. Gabriella raised her eyebrows and smiled guiltily. "I'm guessing that Troy is still asleep?" Gabriella licked her lower lip quickly. "You don't think his mum would let him stay without telling me, did you?" She asked with a grin. Gabriella smiled, realizing her mum didn't really mind. Gabriella picked up the milo and walked upstairs, yelling 'thanks' over her shoulder. Troy's eyes were open when Gabriella walked in. He smiled as she sat down and looked at him with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"You alright?" He asked her as she handed him the milo. Gabriella nodded and smiled. "At least we have the day off…I won't have to face him at school…" Troy trailed off and shook his head, his upper lip curled in disgust. "I can't believe this. It's so bad I can't even 'face' my dad!" Troy snorted and put the untouched milo down, flopping back down on the bed and sliding under the covers. Gabriella smiled slightly attempted to pull the cover off him.

"C'mon, Wild-Cat, you'll have to get out eventually!" She told him, laughing. Suddenly, he let go of the covers and she fell backwards. Troy jumped forward, tackling her on the bed. Gabriella giggled as he pinned her arms above her head. Then she stopped and just smiled at him. "Where's your shirt?" She asked him, smiling slightly. Troy shrugged.

"Somewhere around," he replied. Gabriella looked up at him with a contented smile, her eyes half-closed. Troy smiled down at her and relaxed his grip on her wrists above her head. "Gabriella?" He began quietly. "You're beautiful," he murmured. Gabriella's cheeks flushed slightly and she smiled. "And thank you so much—again—for everything."

"You're welcome…Can you let me go now?" Gabriella asked with a cheeky smile. Troy grinned and shook his head. Gabriella pouted. "Why not?"

"Coz with you trapped, I can do whatever I want…" he mumbled and leaned down. His lips met her neck and Gabriella smiled, her eyes closing. His lips moved up to her jaw line and kissed the corner of her mouth. Then they met her mouth completely and Gabriella kissed him back. His grip on her hands loosened, and she managed to free herself and let her hands roam on his well-toned abs.

"Kids?!" Mrs Montez called. Troy's head snapped up and he flipped off the bed, landing with a thud on the ground. Gabriella snorted with laughter and pulled a top on. By the time the door was fully opened, they were both hurriedly clothed and only looking slightly flushed. Mrs Montez regarded them knowingly. "Well, Troy, your mother is on her way and breakfast is downstairs," she said and went to close the door. Then, she thought of something, and turned around, "And Troy?" Troy looked at her. "Your shirt is inside out." Then the door closed. Troy went bright red and Gabriella started laughing. 

_Please review!_


	15. Chapter 15

_Right, people, next chapter._

Troy and Gabriella walked down the stairs and into the lounge. Ms Silverstone was sitting there and she got up and gave Troy a hug when he walked in. Mrs Montez walked in with a tray of glasses and hot drinks and set them down on the table. The two adults sat together on the couch, and Troy sat on the seat opposite them. Gabriella hesitantly sat down on the arm-rest of the seat, and Troy slipped an arm around her waist, pulling her down onto her lap. Neither of them saw the amused looked passed between the two woman opposite them as Gabriella smiled slightly at Troy.

"Where's Jeanette?" Gabriella asked.

"She wanted to go to school," Ms Silverstone replied. "And it's probably for the best...Good for her to return to normality." Mrs Montez nodded. "Now, we're sorted out what we're going to do about this...Situation." Gabriella felt Troy shift slightly underneath her, and she held his hand, squeezing it softly. "We're going to call Jack, and ask him to come around here. We'll talk it over, him and I, and then Troy, you will come in and we'll all talk, us three. If it gets out of hand--" Gabriella saw Ms Silverstone take a quick breath at that point. "--Then we will have someone to ring the police for us." Mrs Montez saw the worried look on the teenagers faces and quickly added,

"But that is only if worst comes to worst. Hopefully, Troy, your father will see reason and there will be no need to ring the police." Troy nodded tensely.

"I will ring him later on, maybe during the lunch hour at the school, then he will be able to come over," Ms Silverstone said. Troy nodded again. "Well," she let out a relieved sigh. "I'm glad to get that over with at the moment. We're going out for a coffee, and you two can come with us, or stay here, it's up to you."

"Stay here," Troy said quickly, and the two mothers laughed.

"Okay, see you later!" Mrs Montez called as they walked out the door and the front door slammed. Gabriella turned slightly in Troy's lap and looked at him. He was staring straight ahead, looking at the cream-coloured wall opposite him. Gabriella lifted her hand and pushed a strand of hair away from his face and kissed him gently on the cheek.

"What do you want to do? Coz I'm not going to let you sit here and mope about what's going to happen this afternoon," Gabriella told him. Troy smiled wanly at her. "So we can go out for lunch, or watch a movie, or go to the park or--" Troy cut Gabriella off by kissing her quickly. "Or sit here and talk?" Gabriella murmured. Troy laughed and got up, carefully placing her on her feet. "What are we doing?"

"I want to go play basketball," Troy replied. Gabriella frowned slightly but nodded slowly. Troy laughed as he saw the confusion on her face. "Do you have a ball?"

"Um, yeah, in the garage," she replied. She followed him out to the garage, and he found a basketball at the back. It was a bit flat, but it worked. "Where can we go, other than the school?" Troy closed the garage door and turned to her.

"There's a place at the park," he replied.

* * *

Troy and Gabriella walked hand-in-hand to the park, and Troy lead Gabriella down to where the court was. He jogged off in front of her and threw the ball at the hoop, the ball sliding cleanly through and bouncing back to him. Gabriella clapped and grinned and Troy gave a mock bow. He watched as the wind ruffled her hair and Gabriella laughed and ran over to him. 

"I'm going to teach you how to throw a basketball," Troy told Gabriella. She snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah right! That's a Mission Impossible!" Gabriella said with a smirk.

"Here," Troy handed her the ball and went behind her, his arms going around her waist. "Just throw the ball at the hoop." He let his mouth drop to her neck and sucked lightly on the skin there. Gabriella giggled and attempted to move away from his mouth.

"How am I meant to concentrate with you doing that?!" She laughed lightly and shifted, still trying to aim the ball.

"With great difficulty," Troy replied, still holding her tightly and kissing her neck. Gabriella laughed and half-heartedly tried to pull away, without success.

"Troy..." Gabriella laughed.

"Yes?" He asked, turning her around in a circle and pulling her close to him. Gabriella looked up at him from underneath her eyelashes.

"Your a terrible teacher," she told him with a grin and kissed him quickly on the mouth before ducking out of his arms and running away, still holding the ball. Troy laughed and ran after her, chasing her across the grass. Gabriella ducked behind a tree and waited while he ran straight past. Then she ran after him quietly and jumped on his back, throwing the ball away.

"Hey!" Troy yelled and spun around. Gabriella laughed, her legs tight around his waist. He tripped over and they both fell to the ground, laughing. They laid side-by-side, staring up at the periwinkle sky and the sun. Neither of them said anything, scared they might shatter the moment, so they lay in silence, fingers entwined.

* * *

"They obviously like each other very much," Ms Silverstone told Mrs Montez as they sipped their coffee. Mrs Montez laughed and nodded. 

"Yes," she replied. "I'm glad we moved here."

"I must say that I was a bit worried when I told Troy he could stay the night, a bit worried they might do something...foolish," Ms Silverstone shook her head. "I hope you didn't mind." Mrs Montez shook her head.

"Not at all. It's been good for Gabriella to have Troy. I think she likes feeling that she's the one helping someone else, since it's always been her being looked after, because of her father," Mrs Montez sighed and looked out the window. Ms Silverstone reached across and patted her on the hand.

"It's all okay now, you and your daughter are free, and soon Troy will be too," Ms Silverstone said with a reassuring smile. Mrs Montez smiled back and nodded.

_Please review!_


	16. Chapter 16

_Wow, people, I'm so busy! I'm so sorry for not updating sooner! _

It was 1:30 by the time everyone got back to the house. Gabriella could feel Troy literally shaking behind him when the doorbell rang and Mrs Montez let Mr Bolton in. Gabriella and Mrs Montez left the room and both retreated to the kitchen. Gabriella chewed on her lower lip nervously and watched the clock. Shouts began about five minutes later and Gabriella's stomach clenched. She made a break for the room, but Mrs Montez caught her arm.

"No, Gabriella, they'll come out if they want us to help," Mrs Montez said in a tight voice. Her face looked strained and Gabriella knew her mother felt the same way. "They have to do this on their own." Gabriella took a deep breath and nodded.

* * *

Mr Bolton stormed out of the lounge half an hour later, and Ms Silverstone followed, looking slightly strained, but relieved all the same. Gabriella came quietly down the stairs and regarded her mother as she hugged Ms Silverstone. Troy still hadn't come out of the room. Gabriella took a deep breath and walked into the lounge. Troy was sitting on the far side, chewing nervously on his lower lip. 

"It go well?" She asked softly. Troy mumbled something under his breath. Gabriella licked her lips a sat down on the table across from him. "Is everything okay now? Are you going to live with your mum?" Troy looked at her, and Gabriella saw a smile cross his face.

"Yeah. Yeah, I am…Everything's fine," he said. He sounded slightly amazed as he said it, as though he couldn't believe it was happening. Gabriella's face broke out in a smile and she reached over and hugged him hard.

"I'm so happy for you!" Troy pulled away and looked at her for a moment. "What?"

"It's not over yet," Troy said with a sigh. "It has to go through the courts and everything." He looked down at his hands. "They've got the proper divorce and all, but the custody rights say that I have to stay with dad—"

"That will change!" Gabriella cried, covering his hands with hers. "Your father will admit he has a drinking problem, and everything will be okay again!" Troy sighed.

"I know…And dad has promised that he'll go into therapy and AA meetings and…Everything will be fine again…" A grin cracked across his face. "Everything's gonna be fine." Gabriella saw the amazement on his face and she laughed. She jumped up and pulled him to his feet and hugged him.

* * *

"So, everything's cool then?" Chad asked as he chewed on his burger. Troy nodded and smiled across the table at Gabriella, who was sitting in between Sharpay and Taylor. "Cool," Chad nodded. Troy picked up his can of coke and took a sip. "So…Is your dad still gonna coach us?" Troy shrugged. 

"I guess so, I dunno," Troy shrugged. An awkward silence fell.

"So!" Sharpay said brightly, breaking the silence. "Are we all still on for the party tomorrow night?" Troy frowned slightly and turned his attention to the blonde.

"What party?" Sharpay rolled her eyes.

"The one tomorrow, idiot! You guys have to keep your appearances up!" Sharpay said. "So come to the party tomorrow and have a good time, you've been so busy lately!"

"I actually agree with the Blonde—" Chad began.

"What did I say about referring to my hair color?" Sharpay asked him through clenched teeth and Chad quickly sunk down in his chair. Sharpay flicked her hair over her shoulder and smiled brightly at everyone else. "So it's agreed? We're all going?" Gabriella looked over and Troy, who looked undecided.

"Come on, Troy, it'll be fun," Gabriella said softly. Troy smiled.

"Okay, count me in," Troy said with a half-smile.

_Okay, I gots to go! The next chapter will be the last and I will also post _Two Worlds Collide. _Don't count on me posting _Perfection Has It's Price _anytime soon coz I am sooooooo busy! I will try to get it done sometime though!_

_Thank you to everyone who has reviewed!_

_Please review (again)!_


	17. Chapter 17

_Thanks for waiting so long! This is the final chapter! Thank you to everyone, I love you all!!! Please check out my next story, which you guys voted for, that's called '_Two Worlds Collide'_. Hope you_ _enjoy…This chapter is dedicated to _XoZaNeSsAoX.

Music pumped through the house and colored lights shone through the windows. Gabriella paused nervously by the front door, put Sharpay linked arms with her new friend and pulled her through the door. Inside were swarms of people, dancing, talking, laughing and Gabriella had to squint at the first for her eyes to get adjusted to the room.

"Come on!" Taylor shouted over the music. "The others are over there!" Taylor pointed over to where Troy and Kelsi were standing on the other side of the room. As they got closer, they saw Chad and Zeke standing there also, and Jason appeared from another room shortly after. Gabriella smiled shyly at Troy, who grinned back. Troy's hair was still slightly damp-looking from his shower and he wore a grey button-down shirt and jeans. Gabriella was wearing a black halter-neck and skinny-legs, her arms crossed nervously across her chest.

"Can we dance?" Chad asked no-one in particular. Taylor snorted.

"Who'd wanna dance with you?!" Gabriella rolled her eyes.

"Look, guys, we all know you like each other, and I'm pretty sure you guys both know it," Gabriella said bluntly. "Start dancing now, and we all know you're gonna be pashing each other before the nights out." Taylor's mouth dropped and Chad went to talk, but then Sharpay butted in.

"Dude, don't say anything. I don't even like you and I want you two to get together. Just get lost," Sharpay, shoving Chad in Taylor's direction. They looked at each other for a moment, then walked to where everyone was dancing, blending in with the rest of the crowd. Sharpay then turned to look at the group. "I wanna dance as well. Any takers?" She smiled at Zeke who linked arms with her.

"Course," he said with a grin.

"You wanna walk?" Troy asked Gabriella softly. She smiled and nodded, interlacing their fingers together and they walked away. Several girls shot glares in their direction, but Gabriella managed to pick Krystel out in the crowd, and the cheerleader sent a smile in her direction. Gabriella smiled back and then followed Troy out the back door and onto the balcony. It was quieter, and empty, and Gabriella could only just make out the words of the song that was playing at the moment. It was a song by Rhianna featuring Ne-Yo called _Hate That I Love You. _Gabriella smiled and tilted her head to one side, a strand of hair falling out of the messy-bun and across her cheek.

"I love this song," Gabriella murmured. Troy smiled at removed his hand from hers, putting it around her waist instead, pulling her closer to him. Gabriella smiled and rested her head on his sturdy chest. "And I love you…" Gabriella mumbled into his shirt. Troy thought ha hadn't heard properly and pulled away, frowning slightly.

"What?" He asked. Gabriella blushed slightly, but said boldly,

"You heard me," she replied. Troy smiled slightly and put his hands on her hips. He pulled her closer to him, so that she was pressed right up next to him. "Wh-what?" She asked, her breath hitching. He lowered his mouth so that his lips were pressed against her neck and his hair was brushing against her cheek. " Troy…" He kissed her neck and then raised his lips so they met her mouth.

"I love you too, Gabi," he murmured. Gabriella smiled widely at him and kissed him on the mouth, her arms going around his neck. He lifted her up so she was sitting on the wooden railing. His arms went around her waist pulling her closer to him. Neither of them knew that they were being watched from the doorway. Sharpay grinned and shook her head, she turned around and called softly,

"Hey, guys! Check this out!" Ryan, Zeke, Kelsi and Jason came over quickly and all grinned when they saw them. "Where's the other two?" Sharpay grumbled. "Urgh," Sharpay rolled her eyes when she saw Taylor and Chad pressed against a wall, involved in only themselves. "How did we know?" But there was a smile on her mouth as she turned away.

Still oblivious to the attention they were getting, Troy and Gabriella were still kissing, loving every moment.

_Wow…It's finished! _

_Please review one last time and check out my other story! _


	18. Chapter 18

_Hey guys,_

_No, this isn't a chapter, sorry. I just wanna let you know that I have a poll up in my profile and so, if you have the time, please check it out, it would be much appreciated!!!_

_Thanks,_

_CB101._


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